I Hate That I Don't Hate You
by Miss Chips
Summary: A Sandry/Briar thing. It's a bunch of vignettes that slowly tell the progression of Sandry and Briar's relationship.
1. Just to See You Smile

circle ** I Hate That I Don't Hate You**   
  
_**IMPORTANT!:** This story is composed of a series of vignettes which cover a time that spans through Briar and Sandry's relationship. I suppose a 6 year span. So, each story will cover a different year. I'll post what time span you'll be reading about, so you won't be confused. Don't think this goes in straight order, like today then tomorrow then the day after that. It's like, one year, then the other, then the other, etc. So, yeah, just thought I'd tell you that._

_Disclaimer: Imitation IS flattery you know. So, please don't sue me. All rights go to whoever owns them. I claim nothing._

_A/N: First try at any Tamora Pierce fanfic. Be nice. CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM people! I'll brush off flames. But that doesn't mean flame me. I'm not stupid. Well, you know...._   


_Friends and lovers go hand in hand, so don't be surprised if one turns out to be the other._   
~Nico Aguayo~ 

**Chapter 1: Just To See You Smile**   
  
**(A week after "the gang" arrive at discipline for the first time.)**   


Briar huffed. He was feeling especially stubborn tonight, despite the fact he had been highly discouraged to act stubborn. However, he found little choice in the manner. Not only had he been raised on the streets all his life, where being stubborn was really not an option, but he had been carted off from the streets, (he didn't acknowledge the fact that it had saved his hide in doing so,) and shoved into some kind of environment that he had never known. This wasn't the streets. This was Discipline. 

The name implied everything. If being stuck with three stubborn GIRLS, two obstinate woman (one of which was slightly crusty,) and and old headstrong man wasn't discipline, Briar didn't know what was. It was like being in a big concrete ball, while it rolled down a mountain. Except you didn't have a helmet on. 

Briar frowned outside his door as he heard peels of girlie laughter coming from outside. He stared blankly at his door before falling back onto his bed, which was really just a mattress and pile of sheets on the floor. 

**_Great_**, he thought sulkingly,** _a house of females. The perfect recipe for a guy to go soft._** Rolling his eyes at the ceiling, he tore himself from glaring at the ceiling and turned over on his stomach. He squirmed in strange impatience before sighing. 

All this wasn't what he had planned for his life just a few months ago. Instead, he planned on living on the streets for a few more years before he eventually got caught, carted off to some hard labor punishment, and tried to escape. For some strange reason, he never had thought about what life might of had been like. And as he started to imagine, he shivered and turned off his imagination. It had given him goose bumps. Briar ran a hand over his arm. Yep, there was a good amount of goose bumps on his skin. 

A breeze came through his window. He propped himself on his elbows before taking a deep breath of the fresh air. Something was calling him outside. Something, something distant like. . .he didn't know. Sanity maybe. He was going to go insane if he didn't do something quick. With the too much extent of female interaction, a guy could forget who he was. 

He grabbed a fresh shirt from his night stand and put it on, feeling the air come in more steadily. Yep, something was defiantly calling him. The plants maybe? Perhaps. Right then, Briar could care less. His highest priority was to get away. 

He managed to creep out of his window and jump the distance it took from the window to the ground. It was pretty big leap down. He had jumped much larger with some of his "friends" on the street. He and his friend, TabbyCat, jumped from a five story building once to escape a bag. They had landed in a garbage bin, but that was beside the point.

When he did land, his feet hit soft ground. Briar gave the grounds a quick overlook before creeping through it like a slinking cat. When he reached the Discipline gate, he let his guard down and sighed. The girls were probably discussing stuff about dresses and lace and stuff Briar didn't understand. 

His hands were on the gate latch when a voice called from the shadows, "Going somewhere?" 

Briar spun around, obvious shock spread across his features, "Who's there?" His whole body froze with sudden surprise, but he was prepared, hoping to jump at whatever was stalking him. 

He heard a rustle of leaves and someone land into the moonlight. He stared for a few brief seconds before he recognized the face. His shoulders physically sagged and his adrenaline went from soaring to falling down with a painful thud. 

Great, just the person he wanted to see! Sandry! Excellent! 

Not. 

"What are you doing here?" Briar asked harshly, almost wincing at his words. He didn't make it sound like he was going to attack her. Yet, with his life on the streets, when an unexpected visit came, his voice always turned a bit gruff. 

The gruffness in his voice didn't seem to phase Sandry in the least. Her face was lit with a perky smile and her eyes glittered a sparkly blue in the moonlight. She flicked a piece of hair out of her eyes, before walking towards him. "Last time I checked, I lived here." Her lips turned up into an almost smug smile, "By the way: Nice jump from the bedroom. It would've been better if you bent your knees before you landed though. It takes some of the force of falling away." 

Briar glared at her before folding his arms across his chest, "Yeah, well, thanks a million for the tip. I'm quite sure you're an expert on jumping from buildings." He watched as she smiled knowingly and shrugged her shoulders. "But, do me a favor and tell me when you're spying on me. It'll keep me from being paranoid." Briar then turned sharply and started walking past the gate, letting the gate door slam behind him. 

"Wait!" Came the call from behind him. 

He turned on his heel and looked at Sandry. He decided then that he would never marry. Females were too much work. They wouldn't leave you alone. "What?" He asked impatiently. 

Sandry waved something in the air before yelling back at him, "You hafta have one of these to get around Winding Circle," she paused, "at night at least." 

Briar squinted in her direction. "Where do you get them?" 

Her shoulders slumped in her exasperation. That made him frown. Surely, she had no right to be frustrated with him. It should be the other way around. 

"Lark and Rosethorn only have one. You can't just get one." She yelled back, still waving the thing in the air. 

Briar frowned heavily before he walked up to her. He eyed the small pass and then decided to make a grab for it. Unfortunately for him, that's just what Sandry had anticipated. She snatched her hand back in lightening quick speed and clicked her tongue in mocking disapproval. 

"I don't think so, Briar Moss," She purred sarcastically, her eyes glittering. Briar simply tried to snatch it again, but she pulled her hand back further and he nearly feel over the gate in his attempt. 

He swore under his breath before growling, "Come on." Another failed attempt at snatching the pass. "What do you need it for?" She was watching him with amusement in her eyes. He hated that. Briar made one last try to get the pass and then stopped, looking at Sandry breathless. "Okay, what do you want?" 

She simply smiled at him before raising an appraising eyebrow. 

Briar looked at her for a few brief seconds before taking another round of feeble attempts to snatch the pass. And they were, as noted, feeble. 

Sandry giggled at him before shaking her head, "All right you street rogue," With that, she opened the gate door so that, as Briar went to snatch the pass, he fell over himself. 

He braced himself for the impact. He suddenly realized that he never took a liking to nobles. Now, he was looking like a complete idiot, falling to the hard ground. . . in front of a noble. 

Excellent! Wonderful! 

Not. 

Briar ground his teeth and when he landed on the ground, his breath was knocked right out of his lungs. He was going to swear, but the chance was never given to him due to the fact that there was no air in his lungs. Thanks very much to Noble Brat Sandry. He suddenly didn't care that she was a girl; she was going to get it when he got a hold of her. 

However, he never had the chance. When he finally propped himself on his elbows he heard a chorus of muffled giggles. So that noble was laughing at him. Oh boy, if she only knew... 

"Oh, I am really sorry!" Sandry exclaimed through her giggles, trying not to sound sarcastic. She had a feeling that he would be mad as soon as he came up. "I really am!" Another chuckle. "Are you okay?" She crouched down so that she was looking at him, her face spread with a large smile. 

Briar tried his best to look mad, but her face was immediately in front of his and smiling away. And she looked. . . apologetic. Gods, she had a infectious smile. Great, just when he was going to give her a taste of her own medicine. And now he was finding that amusement was turning up in the corner of his mouth. When he thought about it, the whole predicament was somewhat amusing. Even if it meant giving up his dignity, pride, and self-esteem. But that smile that was lighting her face was becoming annoyingly contagious. 

"I _am_ really sorry," Sandry said again. "I swear that it was an accident." She giggled again, "I didn't mean for you to get hurt. Oh dear, you're not hurt, are you?" Despite the concern in her voice, her smile still on her face. 

Briar looked at her, his lips tightly pursed together. He blew a piece of ebony hair out of his eyes, trying his best not to give into Sandry's infectious smile. The pursing of the lips was working fairly well for the moment. 

"You _are_ okay, aren't you?" Sandry asked again, obviously spooked at the silence that was reining over Briar. The tight lip face could be interrupted into anything from the viewpoint of any onlooker. 

He glanced at Sandry and saw a sympathetic smile on her face. Briar hated sympathy. Especially from a girl. A girl NOBLE at that. Yet, Sandry's sympathetic smile seemed different. It was like. . .Briar shrugged; he didn't quite know. "Yeah, Yeah, I'm fine." He pulled himself up on his feet and brushed off his pants. "No thanks to you, however," He added with a bit of resent. 

Sandry's smile went from sympathetic to annoyed in a second. "Well, at least I did apologize," She argued, putting her hands on her hips. 

Briar simply snorted, a smug smile spreading across his face. "Yeah, real good that did." He brushed off his pants as he heard Sandry give off a rather annoyed huff. He simply chuckled in a gutturally way, before turning to her and saying, "So, you wanta give me that pass already?" 

Sandry, already perturbed at the dismissal of her apology, frowned harder. "No," she said stubbornly before going onward, "and yes." She unlatched the gate and walked outside, "I'm going too. You can come if you want too." With that, she started to walk down the path in a passive way. 

Briar watched her leave in disbelief. That female had something coming to her someday. Or so Briar concluded. But, he had little time to contemplate Sandry's overbearing stubbornness. Right then, she had disappeared over the hill and was walking away from view. And that meant the pass was too. Even though he had decided to go for a walk to get away from the girly atmosphere in Discipline, he was going to have to follow Sandry wherever she went. Perfect. 

"Hey, wait a second!" Briar yelled to get Sandry's attention. She turned around and smiled smugly. 

"Thought you'd be coming," She commented, a slight smile gracing her face. She waited until Briar managed to jog up next to her before she started to walk down the pathway. 

Briar merely grumbled. 

The pathway was lined with small crocuses, lilies, and daylillies which were dying in the evening. The bright yellow flowers were twisting and ready to snap from their stem so that a new flower could appear the next day. The moonlight was filtered by some of the sun's fading colors, even though the sun was out of view. There was a definite breeze, which was almost intoxicating. 

Sandry, feeling a puff of breeze pass over her face, smiled and closed her eyes. Her hair was pushed back from the breeze and she giggled, "Sure is a nice breeze, huh?" She paused, waiting for an answer. She got only silence. "Briar?" She popped one eye open, looking to were Briar had been when they walking beside each other. "Briar? Where'd you go?" This time her voice was a bit impatient. 

Suddenly: "I'm up here."   
  
Sandry spun on her heel, jerking her head upward, looking for something. "Up where?" She asked to the air in front of her, frowning.   
  
"I'm just above your head. On the oak tree." Briar watched amusedly, as Sandry looked upward at him. His legs were dangling over the edge of a rather large limb protruding from the oak tree's main stump. It wasn't that far off the ground, since, in the little while Briar had from Sandry's distracted attention, he couldn't climb that far off the ground. 

Briar bobbed on the branch, only to feel the tree tremble underneath him. He jumped at the tree's reaction. Rosethorn had managed to explain --or lectured, however you wanted to put it-- just a small amount of what his powers could exactly do. Briar wasn't still used to it. That, however, didn't harbor any curiosity that was in his mind. 

Reaching cautiously, Briar touched a leaf and, feeling his magic surge through him, watched as the whole tree trembled and the leaf grow three other leaves instantaneously. Alarmed, Briar drew back. Wow. Briar examined the leaf as he felt the whole tree still quiver in strange excitement. Sweat had gathered on his brow, and his whole body was shaking in a queer after affect. 

"Hey!" someone cried from below him, "Try to keep your element under control there, Plant Mage." 

Briar looked down before sighing. Were all females as annoying? Not including Daja and Tris; they were sitting pretty with Sandry on the annoying ladder. 

"Yeah, sorry," He mumbled quietly before steadying the tree with him hand. The tree went still in a second. Briar blinked. He didn't know he could do that. Well, you learn something new every . . . 

Then, suddenly, the tree quivered beneath him and he looked downward in shock. Briar wasn't thrilled at the idea of his magic getting out of hand. Then, a small head poked out of the small jungle of leaves. 

"If you'll give me a hand," Sandry commanded through clenched teeth, obviously perturbed at the situation. The tree's leaves were surrounding her completely and sticking in her hair. 

It really quite funny at the moment and Briar found it too amusing. He burst out into laughter before reaching down his hand towards her. "Can't you girls do anything?" He asked through breaks in his laughter. With a quick jerk, Sandry was with him on the tree limb, an annoyed look on her face. 

"Yeah, real funny," She commented coldly, glaring at him through her eyelashes. "I'll have you know that I climbed a mean tree when I was just a toddler." Sandry, still glowering, picked a lime leaf out of her hair while Briar's laughter subsided into chuckles. "In fact, I was doing just fine until SOMEONE decided to make the tree into a forest." She jerked her head towards Briar, a strange fire in her eyes. 

Briar quit his laughter and raised his arms in a surrender position. "Wasn't me," He started, trying his best to put a hurt, innocent face on, "must have been your imagination." 

Her shoulders sagged from exasperation while she picked yet another leaf from her hair. "I just can't win, can I?" 

Briar chuckled, "Nope." He put a hand on her shoulder and then said in mock sympathy, "But don't worry: You're losing to me. . . it's hard to win." Sandry rolled her eyes and Briar laughed. 

"It's good to know you're a good sport about it," She remarked flatly before a smile spread across her lips. She turned to face Briar, her smile spread large against her face. 

Briar stopped himself almost immediately and pulled his hand away from her shoulder as if burned. The sudden light mood that had atmosphered around them seemed almost spooky to him. Maybe it was just because she was a noble. People like him weren't _supposed_ to like the presence of any aristocrat. 

"Yeah, well. You know," He said non-chalantly, trying to sound uninterested. 

Sandry, however, didn't quit smiling. Instead, she looked at the sky before stretching out and then, putting her knees to her chin, yawned. She reminded Briar of a kitten, her large watery eyes locked on the sky. They sat in silence for quite awhile, before, out of the blue, Sandry spoke: 

"My heart was once a garden,   
By dim, enchanted trees,   
With hint of untouched violets   
And shy anemones. 

"I showed my love the garden   
Where April dreams I'd hide,   
But heedlessly he lost the key   
And now-- we're both inside." 

Briar had turned to look at her as she spoke, confused at first, then finding simple interest. When she was finished, Sandry paused, looking at the sky. 

"My Nursemaid -Pirisi- used to say that to me every time we'd go for a walk in the gardens at night," She commented dreamily, her eyes on the stars. Then she turned to Briar, a distant smile on her face. "Sometimes I really miss the times before we came to discipline." She paused before asking Briar cautiously, "Do you?" 

Briar was caught off-gaurd. He hadn't expected her to ask that. "Wha. . . what?" 

"You know. . . do you ever miss the old days? Picking pockets, stealing stuff. . .you know," Sandry smiled at him. Smugly. 

Briar caught the smugness. He snapped out of his aura, shaking his head. "As much as you'd probably like to think that I was as pampered as you, I wasn't. Sorry, milady. I didn't have parents. I didn't have nursemaids." He paused thoughtfully, "No, I don't really miss those days of crime. Sorry." 

A short period of silence fell over them, before something unexpected happened. 

Briar was leaning on the main limb, listlessly watching the stars. Then, out of the blue, Sandry leaned over and pressed her lips on his cheek, only lingering for a brief, fleeting second. Nevertheless, Briar shot out of his trance-like state and jerked his head up, a definite blush forming on his cheeks. 

"Hey!" He exclaimed, looking at the now smiling Sandry, "What was that for?!" 

Sandry, looking unaffected, simply smiled and shrugged. "I thought it was high time for you to have a bed-time kiss. No childhood is complete without it. Pirisi used to give me one every night" She chuckled at Briar's shocked face, "Don't worry, I haven't fallen desperately in love with you. . ." She paused for dramatic affect, ". . .yet." 

Briar's eyes opened wide, "And what's that supposed to mean?" 

Sandry shrugged mischievously before making a descent down from the tree, "I don't know. Maybe you should find out yourself." Then, with little more thought, she jumped to the ground and looked up at Briar. 

Briar was beyond confusion, and his eyes were wide. He ran a nervous hand through his hair. "I don't do mushy, romance stuff," He called down to her before he made his climb downward also. 

"Okay," Sandry called back, a hint of teasing in her voice. 

Nearing the last branch, Briar jumped to the ground, landing in front of Sandry. He raised an eyebrow at her questionably before stammering, "You ARE joking." He paused before asking in a weak voice, "Aren't you?" 

Sandry simply smiled mischievously. 

And for some crazy reason, Briar smiled also. Darn. As much as he tried, he couldn't shake away the affects of Sandry's infectious smile. And now, he wasn't quite sure if you was starting to really like Sandry or he was ready to kill her. . . 

"Race you to Discipline!" Sandry yelped before getting an unfair head start, running down the pathway back to the discipline cottage. 

Briar watched her for a few brief seconds, before yelling after her, "Hey, no fair. Come back here. Come on, Sandry. Wait!" 

**_And so it begins. . . ._**   


_Okay, there it is. Well, the first part. I'd appreciate any feedback. It's up to you if I continue or not. If I do continue, the next part will be up in about a week or so. Maybe sooner if I set myself to it. It will get more romantic later on. Right now, they're only, what? Ten, maybe? Anyways, "be a responsible reader and review..."_   
_Also, I apologize for not putting Daja and Tris in there more. They'll be there later on. In fact, Tris becomes a major, MAJOR part of the plot. But that's for afterwards._


	2. King And Queen of Hearts

circle1 **Disclaimer: Don't own, so don't sue.**   
**-----------------------------------------------------------------**

_Love is friendship caught on fire._   
_ Northern Exposure_   
_______________________________________

**Chapter 2: King and Queen of Hearts**

**(In between Daja's and Briar's books. They're all about 12.)**   


"You girls had enough of a beating already?" Briar asked smugly, lifting a haughty eyebrow. 

A groan erupted from around a small, oval table around him. 

Briar simply chuckled mockingly before he reached out and grabbed the playing cards from in front of the girls before he stacked them in his hands. He shuffled them randomly, eyeing Tris, Sandry, and Daja who were seated around the table. They were pouting pretty bad. And that's what Briar liked to see. 

"Aw, don't be sad, girls," he leaned over and winked at Tris, who was fuming, "you're losing to me. It's not hard to do." 

Tris's face was scrunched up, showing that she was plainly angry. "I don't get it; how do you keep winning?" She folded her arms across her chest and leaned back in her chair. 

Briar raised his eyebrows before shaking his head sarcastically, "I'm just a man of many talents." 

Tris snorted at that. 

Briar laughed. 

Sandry shook her head before she leaned back in her chair and sighed. She glanced at Daja and Tris before saying, "It's a trap you know. He's a evil spy, sent here to corrupt young minds." 

Daja laughed. "I've suspected this all along," She glanced at Briar, who was putting on a face that was meant to make him look innocent. It just made him look suspicious. "But he doesn't stop there. No, he's got to humiliate us in the process." 

"Humiliate you!" Briar exclaimed, putting the deck of cards on the table. "Hah! I haven't even made you girls put money in the pot yet! Wait until I start taking away your stuff before you talk about humiliation." 

Tris glanced at him, anger still seeping through her eyes. "I think you're using a cheat method. You stacked the deck or something. Nobody wins seven straight. . ." 

"Eight," Briar corrected absent-mindedly, watching himself shuffle the deck of cards. 

"Oh, whatever," Tris spat back. While doing so, a crack of thunder sounded in the distance. 

"Tris. . ." A warning voice said from above. Lark popped her head from the stairwell and gave Tris a warning glance. 

Tris took a deep breath, trying to relax herself. "Sorry," She mumbled quietly. Lark simply shook her head and chuckled, before she headed back upstairs. 

Stretching out, Daja yawned. "Well, I'm beat for the night. I'm heading to bed." She stood up, before looking at the rest of her friends at the small oval table, "Anybody wanna retire with me?" 

Tris gave one more exasperated look at Briar, who winked smugly at her, before saying slowly, "Yeah, I guess so. Niko and me have to get up to do some early training." She got up from the table and stretched. Tris glanced at Sandry, who was concentrated on Briar's shuffling of the deck, before asking, "Sandry, Briar? You going too?" 

Sandry licked her lips. She was hunched on her elbows, glancing deviously at the deck of cards in Briar's hand, thoughts running through her brain. Merely glancing at Tris and Daja, Sandry shook her head. "I'm just starting to get good that this. I wanna play again." 

Briar's head jerked up in surprise. He smiled crookedly at Sandry, "What? Haven't had enough punishment?" 

"You're just afraid I'll beat you!" Sandry argued back, meeting his stare confidently. 

Briar laughed before shaking his head. "You bet I am!" 

It was true that Sandry had been the best in the card game that the four had been playing for the last few days. Of the girls at least. Briar had already knew how to play, so he had the upper hand. However, the girls were pretty pathetic at the game even for beginners. Sandry however, almost beat him in the last match they had. That was never good in Briar's eyes. He did enjoy a good competitor however, and Sandry was one. 

He slapped the deck on the table and stared challengingly. "All right," He started, "Let's see what you can do, Milady. The final match off." Taking the cards in his hand, he shuffled again and started to deal to him and Sandry. 

Daja rolled her eyes, "You guys are really weird. Okay, have fun. I'm off to get some sleep." 

Tris stayed only a little while longer, staring at Briar, who never had taken his eyes off Sandry. Then, as she took a deep breath, shrugged. "Daja's right. You guys _are _strange." Tris headed toward the stairwell, "Good-night, you guys." 

"Good-night, Tris," Sandry called back to her, biting her lip and keeping a watchful eye on Briar. 

" 'Night, Coppercurls," Briar said back, hearing Tris huff in exasperation. She really didn't enjoy Briar's new, invented nickname for her. 

And that left Sandry and Briar alone. Sandry realized how rare that actually was. The four of them had been really bonded lately, due to the recent adventures that had occurred. She hadn't found the time to just talk to one of the four separately. Especially to Tris. She and her had to deal with some issues of the heart that were going on. But that could be dealt with later. Right now, Briar's ego had to be taken care of. And that would be fun to do. 

Briar handed Sandry her last card before he leaned back in his chair. "Okay, milady," He said calmly and smugly, "here we go. Get ready to lose." He winked at her before he looked at his cards. 

"We'll see about that," Sandry retorted dryly before she peered at her cards also. She instantly frowned. A King of Seas, a Ten of Cups, and Commander of Nobles -- a combined total of thirty. Way too high. 

She quickly threw the Ten of Cups off to the side and drew another card. This one was a Ten of Darkness. Sandry smiled mischievously. The Ten of Darkness subtracted ten away from the Ten of Cups so it gave her a new, combined total of Twenty. A near perfect score. Only a perfect twenty-two or a Mages Array could stop her now. And Sandry highly doubted that Briar had that. 

"I call," She said, putting a little of intentional danger into her voice. 

Briar, obviously shocked at her early call, looked up at her with surprise. "Getting confident at this, aren't we?" He asked while he smiled crookedly at her. 

Raising an eyebrow, Sandry smiled also. "I suppose so," She stated, an distinct curl in her lip. Putting her cards on the table, she winked at him, "An even twenty. Think you can beat that, Plant Boy?" 

Briar scrunched his lips together and shrugged lightly. "Don't know," He drawled, "Let's see." He put his cards on the table, laying them out for Sandry to see. A Six of Cups, a General of Oceans, and a Four of Coins -- a combined total of twenty. 

"We tied!" Sandry exclaimed, nearly jumping out of her chair. 

"So we did," Briar stuttered, a bit of surprise in his own voice. 

Sandry crossed her arms across her chest and frowned. "Well then, who won?" She looked up at Briar, her eyes   
questionable. 

"Well, positive card value beats negative card value. My twenty is all positive value-- yours requires a negative card. So you lose again, Milady." Briar grinned at her triumphantly before leaning back in his chair, his arms eased behind his head. 

Her lips pursed in frustration, Sandry looked at him for a few brief seconds before shaking her head. "I don't believe you," She leaned in closer, looking him in the eye, "Is that really a rule?" 

"What -- would I lie to you?" Briar asked her, trying to keep a straight, hurt face. 

Sandry laughed, "Do you really want me to answer that?" 

Briar shrugged before he finally cracked a smile. "I think I can handle the truth." 

"Doubt it," Sandry replied back, subsiding her laughter into giggles. She picked up her last hand of cards and gave them to Briar, who took them and started shuffling. Her giggles managed to stop and all that was left was a bright smile. Watching Briar shuffle the deck of cards, she asked sweetly, "We'll have to work on Tris, huh?" To Sandry's pleasure, she sounded mysterious. 

He stopped shuffling the deck for a little while, glancing at Sandry through his bangs. Then he chuckled, "Yeah, her card playing talents could use some major refinements." 

"I meant getting her to stay for the party instead of crashing out on us," Sandry paused, searching for a change in Briar's face, "No fun without her, right?" 

Briar looked up at Sandry before smiling, "What? You don't have fun with me?" He was teasing. Or at least, she thought he was. 

She found her shoulders slump from aggravation. "Oh, yeah. A ball," She commented sarcastically. Briar chuckled lightly before she went onward, "No really, I do. But I bet you'd like to have her around, huh?" And, to Sandry's immense enjoyment, she saw a very small and almost unnoticeable blush creep on Briar's face. 

"Yeah, well," He stuttered almost incoherently. Sandry could tell that he knew he was going through some kind of weird interrogation process. "I enjoy a tough opponent. That's not Tris," He managed to get out a reasonable sentence out. 

Sandry was slightly impressed. And a bit flattered. Considering that Briar had beaten her at all the card games, her being his toughest opponent was very complimentary. She nodded at him, "Fair enough." Leaning back in her chair, she smiled at him warmly. To her surprise, he smiled back at her. Sandry rather liked his smile. She could see how Tris did too. . . 

"Ready for another one?" Briar asked, a smile still on his face. 

Sandry shrugged. The constant defeats had slightly dampened her enthusiasm toward the card game. But she didn't make any movements towards leaving. She didn't really want to leave quite yet. 

They sat in silence for a minute or so; Briar was busy shuffling cards. Then, suddenly, Briar spoke up, "Hey, did you know some people claim that you can tell the future with a simple card deck?" 

"A card deck? Oh, come on." Sandry looked at Briar skeptically. She hadn't thought that Briar was much of a superstitious kind of person. 

He smiled at her before he blew a piece of hair out of his eyes. "Hey, I'm not saying it's true. I just know how it's supposed to work. Nothing less." Briar shuffled the deck again, watching Sandry's eyes light up with bright interest. Then, with a large thud, he slammed the cards in front of Sandry. "Cut the deck, milady." 

Sandry looked at the deck hesitantly before she stared at Briar in surprise. "You're actually going to do this?" Her voice was almost teasing. 

He stood up to come to Sandry's side before shrugging. "Hey, this could work," he leaned in close, so that his face was near hers, "plus, don't you want to know the future?" 

She frowned at him. "All right, I'll do it." Then, feeling the cards underneath her fingertips, she cut the deck in half. 

"Prepare to be amazed," Briar said mysteriously, in a fake accent. Sandry didn't know whether to laugh or groan. "Eight cards can tell your life -- and here we go." Briar took two cards from the top and laid them out on the table. "These are the origin cards. They represent your past." He turned the first card over. It was a Six of Nobles. Sandry creased her eyebrow. It had a picture of a royal couple sitting on stone thrones. Both of their faces were in shadows and the man held three swords, while the woman held three serpents of some sort. Briar took in a deep breath, "This card shows that this man and woman were in your past. The Six of Nobles shows that these people were strong and mysterious people." He tapped the card, "Notice the shadows covering their faces and the swords and serpents they're holding." 

Eyebrows still creased, Sandry asked, "So these people were in my past?" 

"Well, according to these cards they were." Sandry felt Briar's eyes on her. She could tell he was happy she was taking interest in the future-reading session. 

She shrugged, "Well, that makes sense. My parents were both very strong people. Mysterious too, I suppose. I didn't know them that well. They were too busy with royal affairs to be with me." 

Briar nodded, "Well, it's going good so far. Want to go on?" Sandry waved him on. Briar turned over the second origin card. When they both saw what it was, Sandry's jaw dropped and Briar simply laughed. "Well, why doesn't this surprise me in the least?" Briar tapped the card with his finger, "The Ten of Coins. This card has lots of flowers and jewels on it. Looks like you grew up in a wealthy atmosphere. Well, surprise, surprise." 

Sandry simply looked at the card for a few brief seconds before stuttering, "You. . .you stacked the deck!" She glanced at him accusingly. 

He put his hands up in surrender, "Don't lose your top there, milady. I didn't do it, but this session _is_ going rather well." He looked into her eyes, "I'm thinking you stacked it yourself." 

"I didn't do it!" Sandry exclaimed, almost offended. "But. . . this is almost spooky. When am I going to find about my future?" She glanced at him eagerly. 

Briar chuckled, "Patience, patience, milady." He took two more cards from the top of the deck and then explained, "These are the determination cards. The first one tells you what took you away from the Six of Nobles and the Ten of Coins and the one after that shows what took you away from the one who look you away from the Six of Nobles and the Ten of Coins." Briar paused, "You get it?" 

She squirmed in her seat, "Hurry up already." 

Briar chuckled. 

Sandry overturned the first determination card and frowned. "This doesn't look like a good one." 

"No. No it isn't." Briar frowned, his voice sounding a bit spooked. Sandry peered over at Briar and saw that his lips were pursed and his eyebrows cringed. That made her shiver. 

"What. . .what does it mean?" She asked hesitantly. The card was hard to understand. It was the King of Darkness card. It had a family shrouded in darkness. Only the children, a young girl and boy, were in the dim light. The other two people, probably the parents, were separated from them. Ugly rats had made a circle around the parents, and their eyes were red. It was an ugly card. 

She heard Briar hesitate before he went onward, "This isn't a pretty card and there's really no way to sugarcoat it. It usually stands for death by disease or war. It's this card," he pointed to the King of Darkness, "that takes away this." He pointed to the Six of Nobles. 

Sandry leaned back in her chair in astonishment. "This is really strange." 

There was a small amount of silence between them before Briar asked, "Do you want me to go on?" 

"Yes, of course!" Sandry suddenly sat upright in her chair, eyes smiling again. "I want to see what's in store for my future!" 

Briar chuckled before he turned over the second determination card. This one was the Two of Nobles. It had a woman who was holding two babies, one in each arm. However, there was two swords, one on each side of the woman, stabbed into the ground. 

Sandry preened, "This doesn't look so bad!" She looked up at Briar and smiled, who in turn, surprisingly smiled back. 

He shook his head. "Nope, you got lucky this time. This card shows the person who took you away from the King of Darkness. This person is usually a kind person, not specifically a woman. However, this person, whoever he or she is, is really powerful. Check out the swords." Briar tapped the card and Sandry nodded. 

"Let's be generous: This could be my Uncle." Sandry paused, "He did take me in when my parents died. He's pretty powerful, hence the swords." She leaned back in her chair and smiled brightly. "Well, this is going well." 

Briar shrugged, "I've never had it go this good before." He paused, looking at Sandry mischievously, "I always knew something was wrong with you." 

Sandry slapped him on the arm before commanding, "Keep going already." 

She heard him chuckle. "All right then, milady. The next three cards represent your future--" 

"Oh, yay. Finally." Sandry's lips curved in a broad smile and her eyes lit up. 

" --like I was saying," Briar glanced over at Sandry accusingly. She simply smiled at him, making his stern look dissolve in a slight smile. "These cards represent what's to come. The first two show upcoming events and the last shows your reaction to the second of the future cards." 

Sandry, eager, turned over the first card. It was the Queen of Earth card. The card displayed a young woman facing into the wind with a large emerald sword in her hand. Between her feet was a small river. She was smiling in almost triumphant glory. Sandry smiled at the card, happy at the outcome. However she had no idea what it meant exactly. 

"This," explained Briar, "is the Queen of Earth card. It usually represents the growing up of a young girl," he paused for dramatic effect, "such as yourself. And she's usually conquered the element of earth. See how she standing sturdily on the two land masses separated by the river?" 

"Conquered the element of earth?" Sandry asked quizzically, glancing up at Briar with confusion. 

He merely shrugged, "Darned if I know." He looked down at her and raised his eyebrows, "Listen, I was only taught what each one meant. I practically rehearsed them word for word. I guess..." He paused, looking at her, his mind a million worlds away. 

"You guess. . ." Sandry interrupted his thoughts, looking at him with a smile. Briar immediately snapped out of his trance, blinking his eyes rapidly. 

"I guess, really, it's how _you_ interrupt it." He shrugged, "I doubt it's that important. Shall we move on?" Briar glanced at Sandry, who nodded enthusiastically. So enthusiastic, she flipped the next card over. 

It was the Six of Cups. It had a man wearing armor and he was standing underneath what appeared a large fruit tree. Six cups hung from the tree, golden and silver. The man was holding out a large cup, as if in offering. However, he was gazing at whoever he was offering it to through shy eyelashes. 

"This is the Six of Cups," Briar said quietly, looking down at the still smiling Sandry. "This card shows a man who is a strong guy. Check out the armor." He tapped the card, "He's offering you something, but he's being shy about it." 

Sandry peered up at Briar curiously, "I guess that makes sense. When I finally start doing some Noble duties, I'm going to deal with some treaties from other leaders." There, a perfect, sensible explanation. So, Sandry was generally surprised when Briar objected. 

"It could be something more personal," He stated in a strange voice Sandry had never heard him speak in. Almost. . .shy. Or even --if she dared-- husky. 

Sandry swallowed thickly before raising an eyebrow, "Well, then. Maybe we should flip the next card over to see what I should say." Gently, she flipped over the next card. 

Her eyes widened at the sight of the card. "Wow! This looks like a good card." Sandry exclaimed happily. 

Briar chuckled at her reaction, "Yeah, you got lucky. Again. It's one of the best ones in the deck." The card was the General of Seas. It had a couple embracing in a wooden half-beached sailboat. The man was on the ground side of the boat and the woman was on the ocean side. A rainbow hung over their heads and said inside it in a strange language, "Une Venu Latia." 

"Does it stand for love?" Sandry asked him, her eyes watching as he observed the card. 

Briar shrugged, "That's how it's usually interpreted. It can stand for general good fortune. Anyway, it's outcome is the best one to get." He looked down at her, looking down in her eyes, a slight curve in his lips. 

That's when Sandry felt something do something weird in her stomach. Like someone was tickling her from the inside out. And as much as she felt uncomfortable with the new feeling, she could only stare into his eyes. She suddenly realized that this conversation had something to do with her, not the cards. 

Was this about her? When did it become about her? 

And Briar was doing that funny smile thing. 

They stared for a few breath-taking seconds before Briar finally tore his glance away. Sandry was more than relieved to feel the strange sensation in her stomach go away. For some reason, she felt like the feeling could change her very easily. 

"And then, milady, there's the last card." 

Sandry rubbed her hands together, "Is this my ultimate destiny?" 

"No, no," Briar said, before taking the last card for the future telling session. "It's you." He looked down at Sandry and winked. "It's probably going to be a weird looking card." 

Slapping him on the arm again, Sandry urged him onward, "Hurry up, Plant Mage." 

He flipped the card over and laughed. "Well, this tops the cake. This _is_ the best card session I've ever had." 

The card was the Queen of Coins. It had a woman next to a spinning wheel. She was spinning something with silver thread in it and she was smiling sweetly. Her hair was flying in her face and there was a steel helmet and sword at the woman's feet. 

"The Queen of Coins: A strong, sweet woman who rules over her own area. She's known for superior weaving; either of thread or magic. Or Sandrilene fa Toren: the strong noble, the stitch witch." Briar shook his head in disbelief, "I really think you stacked the deck." 

Sandry frowned somewhat and shook her head, "I'm innocent. It must be pure fate." 

Briar gathered up the deck and then put them in the middle of the table. When he was done, he looked at Sandry, smiling smugly. "Well, am I good, or am I good?" 

"You're wise not to give me another choice," Sandry retorted with a agitated sigh. Briar laughed. 

Briar stretched out and yawned. "Well, milady, I'm going to retire for tonight." He headed out towards the stairs before he turned around. "Good-night, Sandry." 

Sandry looked up at him before she caught herself. She didn't want what happened just before hand to happen again. So, to keep something from repeating she simply yawned, " 'Night." She closed her eyes and heard Briar climb the stairs to his room. 

**What just happened there?** Sandry wondered, angry at herself. She was asking herself stupid questions. What had gotten into her? 

Somehow, she knew. Sandry yawned to avoid contemplating the situation. She knew the answer. But somehow she figured Tris wouldn't be to happy with the answer. . . 

Sandry got up out of her seat and about headed upstairs before something caught her eye. The General of Seas card was face-up in the deck of cards. She stared at it for a few more brief seconds before she turned away from it. 

She wanted Tris to be happy. . . 

She put the cards away and started to head upstairs to go to bed. She had played enough games for one night.   
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_Okay, part two is done. YAY! Anyways, please tell me something about this story. I *crave* feedback! And if you can't find something to say about this one story, tell me what you'd like to see in the next few stories. Puh-Leaze?_   
_Well, the next part will probably be out soon enough. Until then, see ya._   
_Oh, and one more thing: I made the card game up myself. If it sounds kinda weird, sorry._   
  
  


  
  
  
  



	3. Stardust

circle3 **Diclaimer: hah, if I did own this, I'd be Tamora Pierce. Wouldn't that be pretty pathetic if I was her and I was writing fanfiction about my own topic? Yeah, don't sue.**   
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**"**Goodbyes are not forever,   
Goodbyes are not the end,   
They simply mean I'll miss you   
Until we meet again.**"**   
** ~**Kristin Pruett~   
**_____________________________________________________**

**Chapter 3: Stardust**

** (A few days after Briar's book. They're about 14.)**

Briar grumbled. Picking up another piece of his clothing, Briar stuffed it into his dilapedated suitcase. A cricket chirped outside his room and he jumped in tense surprise. Putting a hand to his head, Briar forced himself to calm down. He had known it all along. Those girls had driven him to paranoia. And, boy, had they done a good job! He swore if he was asked one more time for a "good-bye hug," he was going to go screaming into the moonlight. And nobody better go looking for him. He'd be better off. 

Even Rosethorn hugged him. That hadn't bothered him so much. However, when Sandry, Tris, and Daja hugged him, it was totally different. It was just like. . . 

Gag. Okay, maybe not gag. But it was somewhere between gag and "I-don't-know-what-I'm-doing." Briar had to face it; on the streets, you didn't hug random people just for fun. It was like an unspoken rule. 

But, after a bunch of feminine whining, Briar finally gave in. He consented to give everyone _one_ hug, and with the little experience he had at hugging, he was adamantly confused at what to do. 

And the one question lingured on his mind: Where exactly did you put your hands while you hugged? 

Briar simply shook his head in confusion before flinching when he heard the girl's voices come closer to his bedroom. He was quite sure if he heard another, "I'm really going to miss you guys," or another, "Let's write each other everyday," he was going to puke. 

He had wanted nothing more than to grab them by the shoulders, shake them while screaming, "Get a GRIP! Nobody's dying! We're just going away for a year or so. Nothing to get sentimental about!" But, unfortunatly, Briar didn't dare actually act out on this. It would just be his luck that Rosethorn would take him aside- or drag him rather- and lecture him about his manners, and the responsibilities of a gentlemen, and proper etiquette, and blah, blah, blah. . . 

It was really hard to be the only male in Discipline. No one understood you. 

"Hey, Daja, where'd Briar go?" 

Briar's ears pricked up at the last sentence. Oh perfect, they're on a manhunt. Well, he'd have to do something about that. He didn't want to be asked once again for a hug. Not only could he fill out a notebook with questions about things like hugging and --Briar gulped-- kissing, he was just really annoyed. 

Quietly, Briar closed his suitcase and krept out to the hallway. No sight of the girls. Briar sighed in relief before he started slinking through hallway. If he could get out to the roof, he'd probably be safe. He was betting that none of the girls would bother to look there. They'd probably head off to garden or the temple kitchen. And they wouldn't find him there. Hopefully, if he delayed them long enough, he could fall asleep. They wouldn't bother him then. Or at least, he didn't think so. . . 

When he reached the hatch for the roof, he pushed it open and crawled out onto the roof. A fresh breeze instantly welcomed him and Briar took a large lungful of air. That felt much better. Briar stood up and stretched out, feeling his limbs creek and groan. They seemed to Briar to be creeking, " 'Bout time you got away from all those females." Briar smiled. Free at last. 

Or so he thought. "Thought you'd come up here." The voice was coming from a shadowy part of the roof. He couldn't see the person who was talking, but he knew who it was. 

Sandry. Dang. 

Briar's shoulders slumped in frustration. He twisted his neck so that it popped in some places. So he couldn't get away from the females. Beat 'em or join 'em. "All right, what are you going here?" He asked tiredly, knowing that being gruff or harsh about this would get him aboslutely nowhere. 

He heard Sandry get up from a sitting position and start to walk over near him. "I should be asking you the same question." 

The light was rather dim due the fact the sun was slowly descending down into the horizon, so Briar didn't see her until he was well into saying something, "What am I doing here? Okay, where do I start? Hmm, let's see. Well, for starters, I've been hounded down by the same sentimental females all day, and second I. . .um, I. . ." And that's when Briar's jaw went slightly slack and nothing coherent came to his mind. 

Oh hail. Sandry had stepped into the light. 

She had her arms across her chest, relaxed slightly and listening listlessly to him rant. She had changed out of her regular skirts and was simply in a silk night-dress that came to the mid-shin. It was a light fushia and the imperial cut had embroidary stiched into it. Briar had seen her stitch it with Lark lately, but he'd never seen it on her. And. . .um, okay; he liked it. 

So he was a guy. So what? This reaction was normal. Right? 

Plus, she had her hair down. 

"And second?" Sandry asked Briar. She was, what looked like, oblivious to his stares. Her head was cocked to the side in question, smiling warmly. 

And, with her smile, Briar snapped out of his aura and found himself smiling back at her. He just couldn't shake that infectious thing she did to him. Suddenly aware that he had been spoken to, Briar opened his mouth, "And second, I. . .um, well," he looked at Sandry in the eye before asking, "What was I talking about?" 

Sandry raised an appraising eyebrow. "Is female interaction _that_ bad for guys?" 

Oh, smooth. So she knew why he came out here. So, what was she doing out here? Toturing him? That dress sure wasn't helping. "You try being asked fifty-million times for a hug and see how you turn out," he glanced at her before rolling his eyes, "but, of course, you'd probably like that, wouldn't you?" 

Sandry laughed at that. "You might be surprised," She started before she sat down on the corner of the roof, "I'm not quite the 'huggy' type either." 

He followed her suite and sat down next to her. Resting his elbows on his knees, he looked at her through his ebony bangs, "Actually, I shocked." 

She slapped him over the head good-naturally before chuckling. "You watch yourself -- someday, believe it or not, you're going to have to act like a gentlemen." 

"You think so?" Briar asked, smiling crookedly. Sandry raised her eyebrows at him and shrugged. "Naw," he concluded, shaking his head, still smiling. 

Sandry laughed. He rather liked her laugh. 

They sat in silence for a few more minutes, staring at the half-night sky. The stars were starting to glitter through the dim, fading sunlight. Briar thought it was a rather pretty picture. Having Sandry sit so close to him helped his mood a bit. 

But, darnit, he wasn't suppose to be thinking that. He wasn't supposed to be thinking any of the stuff that he had been asking himself in the last few seconds. 

Was he attracted to her? 

Well, he liked her dress. . . 

What were all these conflicting emotions? 

Like he knew. . . 

Was all this becaise he felt something -- no. He was stopping there. Uh-uh, buddy. He had to draw the line here. After all, this was just Sandry. 

Yeah, _just_ Sandry. Hah. 

"That's my star." Sandry interrupted Briar's turmoiled thoughts abruptly. She was pointing to a gleaming star that was just a few inches away from the moon. 

Briar looked at her curiously, "_Your _star?" 

She giggled and blushed delicately. "Uh-huh. Me and Pirisi each claimed a star." She turned to Briar, who was staring at her oddly. "Oh, come on. Don't tell me you didn't do stuff like claim stars when you were little." 

"I can honestly say I never did something _that _weird," Briar commented, smiling teasingly. 

Trying to purse her lips but failing miserably, Sandry giggled, "Thanks. That makes me feel real mature." She paused, turning to Briar. Even her eyes were smiling. "You know, we're not going to be seeing each other for quite awhile after this." Something clouded over in her eyes. Briar prayed they weren't tears. He hated sappy, sentimental females. 

He looked at Sandry pleadingly, "You're not going to cry, are you?" 

She sniffed loudly and chuckled weakly, "I'll try not to." Tilting her head backwards, he could see that she was trying to keep her tears inside her eyes. Her attempts, however, were unsucessful. A lone tear cascaded down her cheek and she sniffed again. Loudly. 

Dang times a billion. It was worse when they actually started to cry. 

Briar sat sat next to her awkwardly for a few seconds, not really knowing what to do. Sandry sniffed again, this time more watery. Desperate, Briar thought with his instincts. In a split second, he wrapped one hand around her shoulder and brought her closer to him. 

Okay, not what he had in mind. However, it wasn't a bad idea. 

Sandry's usual happy composure crumpled instantly. Her chest heaved with silent cries. Fortunatly for Briar, she wasn't making much of a sound. He was afraid that if she did, he would start to cry too. Already, much to his dismay, his eyes were becoming a bit watery. He glanced at the stars, trying to look distracted. 

"You don't try very well, you know," Briar whispered teasingly after they had sat in weeping silence for a minute or so. 

She stopped crying, before she looked up at him, eyes squinted. Pursing her lips, she pushed him in the chest playfully. "You don't empathize very well, you know," She mimicked, trying to use an annoying mocking voice. 

Briar simply rolled his eyes. 

Sandry giggled before sniffing again. And then, much to Briar's surprise, she curled up closer to his embrace. "It's getting cold out here," She commented through clenched teeth. Then she shivered, as if to prove that she was really cold. 

Although he was resonably shocked at what Sandry had just done, Briar couldn't recover from his usual smug self. Truth be told, it was really chilly outside. But that didn't stop his next suggestion, "Maybe, if you had more clothes on, it would help." 

Almost a second after his last comment, Sandry blushed a crimson red. She almost jerked out of his embrace before she glared at him, fire in her eyes. "I hope," she started, almost stuttering incoherently, "that Rosethorn knocks some kind of gentility into that large, empty head of yours. It'd do you good!" The fire was still in her eyes, blazing brightly. However, she still hadn't crawled out of his embrace, even as loose as it was. 

Briar stared blankly at her for a few brief seconds before bursting into laughter. Putting his hand near his heart, he dead-panned, "Oh, please, spare my heart. It breaks, really." 

Cha-Ching. Was he good or was he good?   
  
Sandry stared at him, lips pursed. Shaking her head, she leaned backwards, almost crushing his arm between her back and the chimney they were leaning against. She kept quiet for awhile before shouting at the sky, "All willing gods, please find him a girl who can strap him down to table and tie his mouth shut!" She glanced deviously at him through slinted eyes, "It'll keep him in shape." 

Rolling his eyes, Briar chuckled. Did the girl ever get angry? Even if he didn't want to admit it, he probably did deserve a good slap now and then. Sandry was more than capable to do that. 

So, what was wrong with the girl? Well, other than the obvious. . . 

They sat in silence for awhile. Comfortable silence. The good kind of silence. Briar was becoming painfully aware that he had his arm around Sandry even though she wasn't crying. Instead, she had her face tilted to the side and her eyes closed. All that was left of her former tears were a silver train of water. Her lips were parted slightly, a subtle smile gracing her face. 

That's when Briar realized that he was smiling also. And that's when he realized what he was really doing. This kind of scernario would have sent him gagging just a year ago. This is what girls would call, "Sooo romantic." Tough guys didn't do stuff like this. He was a tough guy. Right? 

A tough guy gone soft. 

Briar he jumped up as if bitten, jerking his hand from underneath Sandry. That didn't leave Sandry in a good predicament. With Briar's unexpected jump, she fell over to the side, just barely catching herself with her hands. On impact, she made somewhat of an, "Omph!" noise, and her hair fell in front her face. 

Preturbed, Sandry stared into space for a brief moment before glaring up at Briar. "What in the world?!" She snapped while she blew a piece of hair out of her eyes. 

He was caught off-guard, shocked at his own actions. He stammered uver his words before stuttering, "I thought it was getting late," He looked at her before nodding his head earnestly, "Yeah, and, I knew you had to get up early tomarrow, so I thought you should go to bed." 

She grunted while she pulled herself up, "That's why you nearly killed me?" Standing up, she pulled her hair back so that it wasn't in her face. She was practically glowering. 

"Killed you?" Briar laughed nervously before running a shaky hand through his hair, "It would take a lot more than falling off a roof to break that thick skull of yours." 

Much to Briar's pleasure, Sandry chuckled at that. Shaking her head, she stood up and brushed off her dress. When done with that, she glanced at him before rolling her eyes. Slowly, she walked up to him, looking him right in the eyes. Then, in a split second, she knocked twice on his forehead before she started walking towards the roof's hatch. 

Briar raised his eyebrows appraisingly before he turned to Sandry. "And, what exactly, was that for?" He asked, his eyebrows still raised. 

She turned to him before smiling smugly, "Just making sure I wasn't as thick-headed as you." Sandry shrugged elaboratly, putting her whole body into it. "But I saw that was an impossible feat to accomplish." With that said, she winked at him. 

"Oh, ha ha. I'm nearly dying with laughter," Briar said, sarcasm dripping off his words. He tried to keep a straight face, but didn't succeed. Sandry had to smile at him sweetly, her eyes bright. And, as if on cue, he smiled back. 

Darnit again. While he was at it, darn it again, and again, and again, and again. . . 

Briar joined her on the roof hatch, ready to go down to the house. As he was just about to go back into the house, Sandry stopped him. 

"So, I guess this is good-bye for awhile now," She said quietly, her voice almost in a whisper. Her eyes glittered in the moonlight. 

He glanced up at her cautiously. He steadied himself to make a break in case she asked "the dreaded question." Briar clenched the sides of the roof hatch, "You're not going to hug me, are you?" He looked at her with an almost pouty expression. Nervous too. 

Sandry giggled, before shaking her head. "No," she started, but then she peered at Briar mischievously. 

The next thing that happened, Briar didn't like to think of as reality. 

She leaned over and gently put her lips on his. Then, as quickly as it started it was over. She pulled back, only, gazing at him through devious eyes. 

Briar stood there with his eyes wide opened, staring blankly ahead in a shocked expression. He blinked once. Twice. 

Sandry giggled at his expression. And that's when he snapped out of his blank stare. 

"Ohhhh, no you don't!" Briar stood up from his sitting position and wagged a stunned finger in Sandry's face. "I _do not_ think so. You _can not_ do this again. . ." 

"Do what again?" Sandry asked innocently, blinking mischievous eyes. 

Briar bit his lip. "You know prefectly well "what." Come on Sandry, stop doing that." He glared at her, "You're messing with my mind." 

Sandry simply shrugged before opening the hatch and crawling down to the living areas. "Good-night, Briar," she called sweetly sarcastic, before dissapearing down the hallway. 

He was about to call after her, but instead he sat on the ledge of the roof hatch and pouted. 

What exactly just happened there? 

She was teasing, no doubt. But, why was he thinking things he wasn't supposed to think? 

Let's just get this straight: 

Sandry + Briar = Not going to happen, or: 

Noble + Street Rogue = Never happened. 

He would just have to force himself to say friends over and over. . . 

Friends, friends, friends. . . 

They were just friends. . . Right? 

Briar sighed before crossing his arms across his chest. It was going to be a long year.   
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**A RATHER LONG AUTHOR NOTE, (A.K.A. Read at your own risk!):**   
_Yes, I know, almost like the first one. But do you guys have any idea how fun it is to write moonlight-kissing scenes? Okay, I admit, I'm weird. . . but, I wanted to show this scene when they were a little more mature._   
_Anyways, in case you haven't caught on, these stories alternate from 3rd person POV, (Point of view.) It's like: Briar, Sandry, Briar, Sandry, etc._   
_The installments are going to be more spread apart now only for the fact that I have a summer part-time job (I'm only fourteen and I have to work during the summer. Is there no justice?) , soccer practice, and my friend's moving away. Soooo, don't be mad if they're every other day._

**_To the reviewers:_****__**

_You guys are the best! Thanks a million. I just have to say a few things for people who asked questions or made comments.___

**Vistana:**_ I think you asked something about sabaac, (did I spell it right?) Hmmm, I'm not quite sure if it was sabaac. I just remember playing something like to what I wrote about with my friend while we were on a train from St. Charles to Chicago. It could be... sabaac. The only real difference between the game I wrote about and the one I played with my friend was that perfect score was 26. Hope that answered your question! Thanks for asking!___

**Blue Wynd Faerie:** _Not to worry about Sandry and Tris fighting. I think that idea is a little chiché. It's not a fight, just merely a, "misunderstanding." But you'll see what that means at the end._

**Kitty:**_ Everyone take wonderful notice of perfect constructive criticism! Thank you for setting a good example for people to follow. Your suggestions help me make the story better. P.S. I'll get around to e-mailing to you soon._   
  
_Everyone else: Your wonderful too! I just thought I might answer some questions by some peeps._

_But I've bored you enough with author notes. 'Till the next story, bye!_   
  
  
  
  
  
  


  



	4. Pretending to love you. . . for a joke's...

circle4 **Disclaimer: I really doubt Ms. Pierce would sue me. . .**   
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_There's so many different ways to be connected to people. There are the people you feel this unspoken connection to, even though there's not a word for it. There's the people you've known forever, who knew you in this way that other people can't, because they've seen you change. . . they've let you change._   
_ -- Angela, My So Called Life_. 

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**Chapter 4: Pretending to love you. . . for a joke's sake.**

** (A week or so after Sandry's CO book. Since I haven't read Briar's CO Book, I'm just guessing. They're all 14 1/2.)**   


Trying to think clearly and weaving wasn't working well for Sandry today. Being frustrated and weaving wasn't any better. She probably had every right to be frustrated, but she didn't really know who she was frustrated at. Herself or Pasco. 

Why had she let him meditate by himself? Sandry let down the shirt she was _trying_ to stitch together and rested her chin on her hand. Perhaps he had earned her trust and she had felt guilty about not giving him her full and undivided trust. Or, maybe, it was because he had successfully meditated by himself before. That should had given Sandry enough of a reason to trust him. She had pitied him. So, why not let him try? 

Sandry sighed. She really hadn't expected his magic to go flying everywhere and disrupt his family. 

It had just happened today. It was a lazy afternoon and Sandry had been stitching a shirt for Pasco. He was going to a rather big, social event held by her uncle later in the week and Sandry was determined to finish him a truly well stitched shirt. She had even agreed to weave a little magic into it. When she had asked Pasco what he wanted woven into it, he had answered in what Sandry had thought. . .silly. He wanted the shirt to have a special shine. That was what he wanted of all things. A "special shine." 

Sandry rolled her eyes in exasperation. What a waste of magic. But, if it made Pasco happy, she supposed it was worth the effort. 

She had almost uninvited Pasco to the formal ball this afternoon. It had happened when she had let Pasco do afternoon-meditation by himself. She had been quite pleased with his progress in training so far, so, stupidly, she didn't monitor him while he was in meditation. Instead, she sat up in one of Pasco's family rooms. There, she followed a simple stitch pattern that gave off a shiny, flattering appearance. Lark had showed it to her a few days ago when Pasco asked for the shirt. 

When Lark had heard what he wanted, she had burst out into laughter. Not mocking, just simple amusement. Nevertheless, Sandry had to hide the blush creeping on her cheeks. 

However, the pattern was fairly easy and Sandry was almost half-way done with the shirt when she heard a cry from downstairs, in the courtyard. 

The cry was pretty explanatory. It was simply, "Paaassccccooo!" 

Sandry had looked up from her sewing before she heard another cry, "Lady Sandilene! Pasco!" She had jumped up from sewing and ran down a small flight of stairs to see Pasco's family lying helplessly on the ground, hands and legs pinned down by some invisible force. 

Forcing herself to not gape, Sandry stood there, staring blankly, "Why happened?!" She finally asked, dumb-founded. 

One of Pasco's family members averted his eyes towards Sandry. He wasn't able to actually move his head due to the fact that it was pinned to the ground. "Don't know exactly, milady. We were just doing our chores when all of a sudden --out of nowhere-- we all were shoved to the ground. Now, don't get me wrong, milady, but Pasco's the only magic we's got in the family, and. . ." 

He wasn't able to get anything out of his mouth for Sandry was dashing up the stairs, skirts pulled up to mid shin. When she finally came to the room that Pasco was meditating in, she forced the door opened and let it slam against the wall. She watched as Pasco, surprised, jumped to his feet and stared at her in horror. Sandry could see now how he looked that way. When she stood in his doorway, her hair was in disarray and she panting like an angered animal. Sandry suspected she had a I'm-about-the-wring-your-neck look in her eyes. 

"Wha. . .what did I do?" He asked nervously, biting his lip. 

Sandry raised an exasperated eyebrow before bellowing, "What did you do? Look outside and see what you did." She then pursed her lips and crossed her arms as she watched Pasco run over to his window. 

He took a glance outside, caught his breath, and then looked at her apprehensively, "I didn't do it! I was just meditating and then you walked. . ." 

She dismissed him with a wave of her hand, "What were you thinking about when you were meditating?" Lips still angrily pursed, she walked closer to Pasco before glowering over him. 

Pasco stared at her blankly before shaking his head, "What's that supposed to mean?" 

Pointing a finger in his direction, Sandry scolded, "You were thinking about the ball this week, weren't you?" She looked at him accusingly, "Weren't you?" 

"I. . .I," He faltered, looking up at Sandry through guilty eyelashes, "Okay, I was." Something instantly became interesting at the bottom of his foot as he pushed in around. "Sorry," he managed to murmur weakly. 

Sandry unpursed her lips and uncrossed her arms. She knew she couldn't stay mad at him. It was her curse in life. She just couldn't be mad at boys who were mischievous. She'd have to add Pasco to the list she had of mischievous boys. Briar was already on it. 

Sandry had managed to "un-weave," Pasco's "dance" that he had managed to do in his head. Fortunately for the both of them, the they were able to get Pasco's family from lying with their backs to the sky, legs and arms outstretched. It was a good thing too. It reminded both Sandry and Pasco too much of a dissection project. 

However, when that was over with, Sandry dragged Pasco up to her room at her uncle's so she could keep a close eye on him. 

Pasco had fidgeted the whole afternoon. That bothered Sandry. No, it had annoyed her to the point of insanity. 

In fact, she was about to scold him again when she heard a slight tap at her door. Sandry glanced up surprised, before putting Pasco's almost finished shirt on her chair and walking up to the door. 

Pulling open the door, Sandry glanced at the person in front of her before blinking. Then, with a sudden yelp, she exclaimed, "Jaque! How good to see you!" 

The man standing in front of her was a middle-aged man with a sturdy build, not bulky but losing it's prime fitness. He had a slightly gray beard that was neatly trimmed, and a large leather bag was held up by his shoulders. When he saw Sandry's reaction to his appearance, he laughed jolly. "That's quite all right, Lady Sadrilene. You know you don't really want to see me." He smiled at her sweetly, before reaching in his bag and producing a small brown package, "I'm sure ma'am, you wanted to see this rather." He waved the package around, still smiling. 

Eyeing the package, Sandry managed to put her hand on the older man's arm and say, "Now, now, Jaque. I'm delighted to see you," she then watched the package in Jaque's hand and licked her lips, "but, Jaque, who's the package from?" 

The old man laughed again, "Thought you'd be interested." He pushed the package into Sandry's hands. "It's another package from this friend of yours: Briar Moss." He watched as her eyes lighted up and she started to tear open the package. Laughing, he roared, "You sure do enjoy his packages, don't you, Lady Sandrilene?" 

Sandry, eyes smiling, glanced up at Jaque. Shaking her head, she shrugged, "Oh, you know Jaque. I enjoy any kind of package. . ." 

"Yes, yes," The older man interrupted, swinging his leather bag further on his shoulder, "but you _have_ gotten quite a few from this young man lately." Something in his voice made Sandry look up at him in surprise. Blinking her eyes, she smiled questionably. 

"I feel like you're implying something, Jaque." Despite what she thought he was saying, Sandry smiled at the old man. 

The old man didn't answer. Instead, he merely smiled bitter-sweet at her before saying, "I don't imply anything, Milady." And then, his smile became cheerful, "I simply know." He winked at her, "Remember this and you'll find all life's answers for all of life's big questions: Ask your heart and you'll always be right." With that, the older man bowed to her and made his way down to her uncle's quarters. 

There was a brief silence before Pasco broke it abruptly, "What in the world is that supposed to mean?" 

Sandry turned to him and frowned. "Aren't you supposed to be reading?" She asked accusingly, before making her way to her desk. 

"Yeah, yeah," Pasco replied poutingly, picking up his book on mages and pretending to read. Unfortunately, his stunt didn't work. The book was upside down. 

She sighed before smiling weakly at the pouting Pasco. Sitting down at her desk, she turned to her student, "All right, do you want to read Briar's letter with me?" 

Immediately, his eyes glanced up from his upside-down book to her. He smiled largely at her before speaking cheerfully, "If you insist. . ." With that, he practically skipped over to Sandry's desk and stood over her. 

Sandry rolled her eyes before opening the box that was wrapped in a brown-yellow paper. Inside, there were papers and something shining underneath them. Assuming that the papers were Briar's letter, Sandry pulled them out first. Ignoring whatever was shiny, she about to read his letter when Pasco yelped. 

"Holy Harrier the Clawed!" He exclaimed, pointing to the shiny something at the bottom of the package. Sandry looked at Pasco in surprise before looking whatever he was pointing to. When she saw it, she gasped. 

"Holy is right," She whispered huskily, before reaching in to grab the once shiny thing. Now, it was blinding. 

Sandry examined it, squinting her eyes. The shiny-thing was really a rock, brimming over with bright magic. Pink flashes of light were shining through the surface, making neon pin prick lights. Then, after a few brief seconds, the light turned to a light green. The light green shone for a minute before it changed to a bright red. Sandry supposed, even to the naked eye, one could faintly see the lights. 

"I thought you said that Briar's magic involved plants," Pasco said almost a bit scoldingly, as if she had told him a lie. 

Sandry frowned up at him, "It is." She retorted sharply, before she calmed herself down, "It is, Pasco. I just. . . I don't really know." Putting the rock down, Sandry turned to Briar's letter and picked it up. "Maybe this will answer to what this. . .thing is." 

The letter was rolled up in a scroll-like fashion, tied together snugly with a string. Using her magic, Sandry called the string out of it's knot and started to unroll the letter. It was only a page and half long, but Sandry didn't mind; Briar had already sent her two letters before this month. They had been decently long. Tris and Daja had sent her three letters in the whole time they had been out. She could understand though. They all were quite busy. Plus, truth be told, she secretly enjoyed Briar's letters a bit more. She wasn't quite sure why she did. They were just. . .comforting. 

"Well, are you going to read it or not?" Pasco snapped impatiently, crossing his arms across his chest. 

Sandry simply smiled a weak, exasperated smile at him. "If you insist. . ." She mumbled before she started to read the letter out loud: 

_Sandry,_

_And you say your life is hard. Hah! Try being stuck with Rosethorn for more than a month while she in one of her bad moods. It's not exactly fun. Every night she comes home from the Earth Temple so she can complain about stuff. But of coarse, she likes to do that all the time, but it's gotten worse in the last week. And, if that's not enough to drive a guy to insanity, I've got my own squirt to look after._

_You said you have your own student to teach the basics to, huh? They're real fun, aren't they? Found this girl shining magic into the rocks. Don't ask, I've never heard of it either. But, as luck has it, I got to be her "mentor," and spoon feed her the basics. Yeah, real fun. But, you probably love having a kid hanging on your every word, right?_

At this point, Sandry burst into laughter. Pasco was simply pouting with a tight mouth. When she managed to get herself under control, Sandry went on with reading the letter. 

_Anyways, that's why there's that rock in the package. You probably figured out by this point that the thing has enough magic in it to light up all of Winding Circle. Damn (A/N: Yes, I cussed. Sue me. No, no, don't really sue me.) near blinded me._

_Speaking of Winding Circle, have you talked to Daja and Tris lately? Tris is too far away to mind-talk with, and Daja says she's been busy. However, when Tris wrote me, she said she's going to head up to Discipline in about three months. Daja says she's heading up there in four. It'll take me about two. The little kid here is taking up about all my time. I don't know, maybe we can meet._

_Well, good luck on your training. I have a feeling your going to need it._

_I have to go now; Rosethorn is going cranky. She says she's got a head-ache and claims that she's going to give me one if I don't start to end this letter. But you know, her barks worse than her bite. Supposedly._

_ Briar_

Sandry ended the letter and smiled warmly. Putting the letter down, she stared into space, still smiling, before she sighed in reflection. 

Pasco stared at her in mild surprise. Sandry supposed he had never seen her act like that before. He squinted his eyes before saying slowly, "You _liiiike _him, don't you?" 

Her head popped up to look at Pasco. His arms were crossed and he looked suspicious, if almost. . . jealous. Sandry grinned mischievously, before putting on a face that could be interrupted as a girl swooning. Cocking her head to the side, she smiled slyly, "And what if I do?" Her voice was husky, full of fake emotion. 

Pasco seemed to fall for it however. Almost shocked at her response, he backed away. "Huh?" Pasco gulped, "I thought you said you guys were just friends." 

"Oh, I don't know," Sandry replied, rolling her eyes deviously. "He has always been a bit more than a friend, you know." Sandry then stood up and leaned back on her desk. "In fact, we've kissed before." Sandry nearly burst out laughing at Pasco's expression to that. His eyes were bugging out so bad, she was sure they might fall out of their socket. And she also knew that she was stretching the truth. Sure, _technically_, She and Briar had kissed, but that really didn't count. That was just a pathetic attempt to get Briar to start thinking a bit more sentimental. 

But it hadn't worked. Or at least, she didn't think it did. Briar hadn't mentioned too much about Tris. . . 

"I, I got to go to Discipline," Pasco stuttered, backing away. "That's right. Lark wants me to help with supper." With that, he took off in a sprint, but not before he ran into her bed post and nearly tripped. Pasco recovered and them turned to her, "I'm _all right_. I'm fine. Don't worry about me." He paused thoughtfully, "In fact, don't follow me." Then, with a burst of boyish speed, he opened her door and ran outside. 

After the door was closed, Sandry burst out into laughter. That lasted for a few minutes before she managed to calm herself down. Still trying to suppress her giggles, she picked up Briar's letter, read it over again before she sat down at her desk. She took out a pen and some ink, and she started her own letter back to Briar. 

Sandry thought, before she smiled deviously. She had just the idea. 

_Dear Briar,_

_I have received your letter today, but I had something to tell you that you might find amusing:_

_Today, I pretended to be in love with you. . ._

Writing this, Sandry giggled to herself, before continuing. 

___________________________________________________________ 

_Hello people! Thanks a billion for reviews! You guys are wonderful._   
_Sorry, that part wasn't hopelessly romantic, but I just thought I should write something that covers the gap between leaving Winding Circle and them, well, you'll see. . ._   
_I'm trying the best I can to get these updates up as fast I can. Bear with me, please?_   
_Well, any suggestions for the story? I seriously consider all suggestions. Two of which, wait, no three, I've decided to use. So, your comments really do matter._   
_Well, until the next time, see ya!_   
  



	5. Are Pillow Fight Romantic?

circle5 **Disclaimer: I was thinking how weird it would be if you had a split personality and didn't really know that you were a famous author but you REALLY were. Like I was Tamora Pierce and didn't know. But, since that's not the case, don't sue me.**   
**________________________________________________________________________________**

_"My dear, you've moved into the greater world, whether you wished it or not. As a teacher, as a noble. You've outgrown Discipline. You're getting ready to take your place on the adult stage. Pasco was just the beginning."_   
_ ~Lark, Magic Steps~_

___________________________________________________________________________________   


**Chapter 5: Are Pillow Fights Romantic?**

** (After Tris's CO Book. Everyone's about 16.)**   


The horse that Briar was riding was being rather annoying. No, in fact, it was being just a regular pain. Kicking the thing in the sides to try to spur it onward, Briar cursed profusely. With the pace the horse was keeping, Briar sincerely doubted that he would ever get to Discipline. 

"Are you coming, or aren't you?" Someone asked in front of him, impatience laced through her voice. 

Great, a stubborn horse and Rosethorn. Not an ideal combination. 

Briar looked up at his companion and frowned, "It's not my fault that this horse has something against me." With that, he kicked the thing in the side hard, obviously perturbed. 

It wasn't a good idea. In fact, it was a really bad idea. 

The animal's eyes grew large and instantly reacted by rearing upwards, neighing indignantly. Briar, shocked, pulled back at the reins tightly, forcing the animal to ground on it's bit and go flying upwards more. Waving it's hoofs in the air, the horse flew Briar off it's back. Unfortunately, he still had one foot caught in the stirrup and, when flying off the back of the horse, he found himself upside down. 

And Rosethorn was laughing. Laughing hard at that. 

Needless to say, Briar didn't find anything amusing about the situation. 

When the horse finally calmed down, Briar was able to untangle himself from the stirrup and fall painfully to the ground. Grunting and cursing at the same time, he sat himself into a sitting position, his elbows on his knees. Panting in large surprised breaths, he glared at Rosethorn, who was still laughing at him. 

"Shut-up," He growled, running a shaky hand through his hair, "You wouldn't be laughing if it was you." 

Her laugh subsided a bit, "You're right," She gasped, unbearable chuckles escaping from her lips, "But it _isn't_ me." Then, opening a satchel attached to her belt, Rosethorn produced an apple. Walking up to the horse, she started feeding it to the angered animal, who, tasting a bit, chewed thoughtfully at it. 

Briar looked at her in shock, before stammering, "You. . .you're giving it an apple?!" His eyes opened wide with anger, "But it damn near killed me!" 

She looked up at Briar from feeding the horse and frowned crookedly at him, "No, boy, you nearly killed _it_ in fright." She petted the muzzle of the horse, who, in turn, neighed affectionately at Rosethorn. "If it helps you to understand, I'll ride you instead, and if you're not going fast enough, I'll kick you." Putting her hands on her hips, she glared at Briar, who was simply looking back, still angered. Then, coming up to Briar, she pulled him by the ear, "And watch your mouth, young man." 

Oh yes, of course. How _could_ he had forgotten? Rosethorn; the most moral of all morals. 

Briar rolled his eyes. 

Pulling him up to his feet, Rosethorn handed Briar the reigns to his horse. "Here," She instructed tartly, before she went to her own horse, "and this time: don't kick it." With that, she started riding off towards Winding Circle, about a mile ride. 

"And this time: don't kick it," Briar mimicked quietly behind Rosethorn, using a annoying voice. Then, with a grunt, he squeezed the sides of the horse before yelling, "Giddy up!" And as if in revenge, the horse took off in a gallop, sending Briar shooting to the back of his saddle, fiddling helplessly with his reigns. 

And that's when Briar decided he didn't like horses. 

~*~ 

After about an hour later, and two more bruises from Briar's self-acclaimed stupid horse, they arrived at Discipline. It was turning dusk fast and Briar could hear girly voices inside the cottage. 

So the posse had arrived. Briar sighed. It was time to face the music: and that meant hugs. 

Fun stuff. Hah. 

Rosethorn and Briar tied the horses against the fence post so that they could chew on the grass. Briar wasn't thrilled by the idea; such fine grass wasted on such stupid beasts. However, he could tell Rosethorn would give him one of those, "looks," if he didn't shut his mouth. That was inspiration enough. 

Grabbing his sacks off his horse, Briar heard peels of laughter from inside the house. They probably didn't even know he was there yet and that was perfectly all right with him. The longer he could delay having fifty-million hugs, the better. 

He glanced nervously at the cottage before he reached inside one of his satchels and produced a small, torn letter. Unfolding it, Briar peered up at Rosethorn hesitantly. She was talking to herself and going through her bags. Sighing to himself, he started to read the letter: 

_Dear Briar,_

_I have received your letter today, but I had something to tell you that you might find amusing:_

_Today, I pretended to be in love with you. . ._ _but of course, you don't want to hear of such "mushy, romantic," stuff, do you now?. . ._

Briar reread that part over and over again, confused beyond reason. When he had read it the first time, he was shocked. In fact, he had stared blankly at it for over five or six minutes. Then, Rosethorn started to complain and he had to read the letter as fast as he could. The rest of it simply stated about life, Pasco, for him to come to Discipline in seven months, and bladdy, bladdy, blah. . . 

Yet, after all these months, he was still confused as anything at the first part of the letter. 

Given it was written by a female, and by Sandry at that, but still. . . 

Suddenly, a hand clamped down on his shoulder. Briar jumped in surprise before turning to look at whoever had just touched him. He didn't really have to see anything, for a sharp voice came rang at him, "I thought you'd be in Discipline all ready boy." It was Rosethorn, obviously. 

Briar looked at her and then chuckled nervously, "How about you go in first, take all the hugs for me, and I'll just stay behind you." 

Rosethorn laughed at him before shaking her head, "You're pretty pathetic, boy. They're just a bunch of girls and you're as pale as death." She came closer to him, "They're a bunch of ninny girls. . ." 

". . .Bunch of ninny girls!" Briar interrupted before he pointed towards the cottage, "If you were a guy, you'd know what I mean. They can bury you alive with hugs, believe me, I know from experience. . ." 

"Oh, girls!" Rosethorn yelled sing-song, interrupting him in mid-sentence. When he realized what she was trying to do, Briar made an attempt to cover her mouth, but she caught his hand before smirking evilly at him. "Briar's here!" She yelled again, looking down at a horrified Briar. 

Briar heard the front door open and he closed his eyes, waiting for the hugs. He started counting mentally. 

3. . .2 . . .1. . . 

"Briar!" Came an enthusiastic reply from somewhere near him. He opened his eyes slowly, knowing that Rosethorn no longer had hold of his wrists. He could try to make a run for it. However, the chance wasn't given to him due to the fact that arms were already wrapped around his shoulders. 

Looking down, Briar raised an eyebrow in surprise. It was Daja who was hugging him now. Though, when she caught his eye, she blushed and stopped hugging him. Instead, she laughed cheerily and then punched him in the arm. "How's it going, _Kaq_?" She asked jokingly, crossing her arms across her chest. 

Briar smiled down at her before sticking his hands in his pockets, "Well, I'd be a lot better if I didn't have the strange feeling that I'm being hunted down by females. 

Daja laughed before shaking your head, "I think you should worry. Sandry and Tris have been wondering where you've been all day long." She glanced at him before remarking slyly, "They're probably in the mood for lot's of hugs." She started to walk towards Discipline, and Briar followed. 

Briar grimaced. Great, just what he needed. 

Sighing, Briar's shoulders drooped and Daja chuckled at him. Patting his shoulder, she said in mock sympathy, "Oh, you poor little boy," She clicked her tongue and shook her head, "You're being bombarded by girls. Poor, deprived child." 

Briar glared at Daja in exasperation before smiling and punching her in the arm. "You sure haven't changed that much," Briar noted, "still as smart mouthed as ever." He let Daja laugh at that before he stuck his hands in his pockets, "How about the others?" 

Daja shrugged, "Well, you know Sandry and Tris: stubborn and as unmoving as usual." She chuckled before shaking her head, "We all make one kind of friendship, huh?" Glancing up at Briar, she went onward, "We're all a bunch of sly mouths that happened to bond together." 

Briar smiled before saying, "Me, a sly mouth?" He shook his head in disbelief, "Naw, I don't think so." Daja simply laughed at him before she opened the door to Discipline. 

Hoo, boy. This is going to be an experience. 

As he walked inside, Briar looked inside and saw Tris in the kitchen, setting out dishes for what he thought was supper. 

Well, one good thing. He came when food was being served. 

She turned around, humming something to herself. When she heard the door open, she called out, "Daja, wipe your feet. I DO NOT want to have to sweep that floor again. You know I have that chore. . ." 

"Whoa, Coppercurls, no need for you to get your hair in knots." Smiling smugly, Briar put his bags down on the floor and said, "It's just me." 

Tris looked up in shock before her eyes widened. Immediately, she dropped the glass she was holding and stared at him with large eyes. The glass broke on the floor, but she hardly noticed. 

Daja chuckled, before saying mischievously, "Do you guys need to be re-introduced?" 

Briar stared at her. Why did he get the feeling that if someone cut off her tongue, it would do the world a lot of good? He glanced at Tris before smirking, "Well, if you're not gonna give me a hug --and that's fine with me-- I'm gonna go put these bags away. You_ can_ keep staring if you really. . ." 

He was stopped mid-sentence as Tris let out an uncharacteristic shriek and came running over him, wrapping her arms around him and holding tight. 

Whoa. He wasn't exactly expecting that kind of reaction. 

Briar chuckled weakly, before gasping, "Yeah, glad to see you too, Coppercurls, but you wanna stop squeezing so tight?" He drew in a sharp breath, "I might just suffocate." Truth be told, it wasn't really a sarcastic comment. He really did feel the breath leaving his lungs. 

She stopped squeezing suddenly before she almost pushed away from him and blushed. A frown formed on her face before she pulled back her hair away from her eyes. Briar noticed that her hair had grown nearly to the middle of her back and had straightened a bit. She still had the glasses she once had, and now that she was embarrassed, she pushed them up further on her nose. 

"Yes, well," She stammered quietly before she glared up at Briar, "Good to see you too." With that she went back to the table, her back turned to him. "Now, get those shoes off the kitchen floor. I don't want you tracking mud in," She snapped at him. 

Briar laughed under his breath. She gave some kind of welcome. Briar wondered how she was when someone came in that she _didn't_ want to see. 

Shaking his head, he picked up his bags and took off his shoes just as Tris commanded. He was too tired from the road to argue. To argue with Tris cost energy. 

He was about to ask where to put his bags when he heard a voice. Freezing in his tracks, he smiled unconsciously. 

"What's going on in here?" The source of the voice came into the room, wiping her hands on her apron. She looked around the room curiously, before her eyes caught Briar. Her blue eyes brightened and a slight curve lighted her lips. 

So, she finally showed her face after all these years. Well, she had some questions coming her way. He wouldn't stop until he got his questions answered. . . 

"Briar!" Sandry exclaimed, practically skipping up to him. 

Oh boy, here comes the hug. Briar simply stood still, waiting for the impact. 

Come it did. Sandry wrapped her arms across her neck in girlish glee, oblivious to her childish behaviors. After a few seconds, she pulled back at him and frowned mockingly. "You're late, young man." Her voice was a teasing scold, her face a sarcastically disappointed. 

"So sorry, milady. Forgive me, really." He dead-panned before bowing. 

Sandry chuckled before returning his bow by dropping a curtsy. 

Daja, who had been glancing from Briar to Sandry, laughed. "Didn't I always say you guys were weird?" Picking up Briar's bags, she shoved them into his hands. "Since there are new students in Discipline, we're going to have to sleep in the attic for awhile, and. . ." 

"The attic!" Briar bit in, turning to Daja, a shocked expression on his face. 

"Yes, the attic." Sandry replied tartly, grabbing his bags out of his hands. "Lark set some cots up there so that we can sleep up there together." 

Briar was about to comment about the sleeping conditions, when Sandry interrupted him, chirping to Tris, "Hey, Tris, you wanna help Briar unpack?" He watched her as she said it. He didn't like the look in her eye, it was almost sly. 

And that was never, _never_, good. 

Tris turned around and frowned. Landing her hand on her hip, she snapped, "What? You can't do it yourself?" Blowing a piece of hair out of her eyes, she glanced at Sandry, "Plus, I almost got dinner ready."   
  
He watched as Sandry heard her comment. Her face practically fell. However, her smile still remained on her face, but as she turned to look at him, her smile became nervous. "All right," she drawled, "let's go you Street Rogue." With that, Sandry started skipping towards the stairs, carrying his bags in her arms. 

Great, he had to keep up with her now. Things were getting better by the minute. 

Jogging to keep get in step with her, he stopped and picked up one of his bags and threw in over his shoulder. Sandry looked up at him in surprise before smiling. And, on cue, he smiled back. 

And you'd think he would've outgrown that smile thing. But, good luck had always been on his side. . . not. 

Briar blew a piece of hair out of his eyes and then asked nervously, "We done with hugs for today?" 

Sandry laughed before she turned to him and smiled. "Oh, I'm not quite sure. We'll see about later, huh?" She smiled again at him, before looking ahead. It was then that Briar saw something strange about her. Her usual cherry smile didn't quite reach her eyes. Something clouded it over, and it wasn't just thoughtfulness. 

He was about to ask what was going on but Sandry stopped him before he got the chance. "Here's the ladder that goes upstairs to the attic." And in fact, there was a nice looking ladder that lead to a cut-out door at the top. Briar hadn't recollected an attic when he stayed at Discipline, but he it could've been in a cut-out hatch that he just didn't see. 

They both headed upstairs, climbing the stairs in a clumsy manner. Briar nearly lost his footing twice, but managed to cover it so that it looked like he meant to do it. To his delight, Sandry didn't even notice his almost-falls. Either that, or she just didn't comment on them. 

Nah, she didn't see them. 

When they reached the top of the stairs, Briar gaped. The whole top was a simple grained wood, but the attic was pretty open aired. The ceiling was about eight feet high and the cots were aligned up against the walls, two at each wall and one on the wall opposite him. Briar supposed that was his bed. 

He was right. Sandry ran onto it and jumped on it. "This is your bed," She said as she giggled, while she jumped on her knees. 

"All right, all right." Briar said as he watched amusedly as Sandry bounced childishly on the bed, "If it's my bed, get off it." With that, he made shooing motions with his hands, and threw his bag next to the bed. 

Sandry merely frowned at him before she bounced one more time and landed with her feet dangling off the edge of his bed. Swinging her feet, she glanced up at him mischievously, "We'll have to work on Tris, right?" 

Briar popped his head up and looked at her through suspicious eyes. That wasn't the first time she had mentioned Tris like that. In fact, the first thing she tried to do was leave him and Tris together. The whole idea was starting to make his seriously suspicious. If not paranoid. 

He smiled crookedly at her before sitting next to her on the bed. "You not glad to see me again?" He looked at Sandry and winked. 

She simply squirmed nervously under his gaze before smiling. The smile didn't reach her eyes again. "Yes, of course." And then she sighed, before she giggled tensely. She turned to him, sadness in her eyes. "Of course I am." 

Briar blinked at her and frowned in concern. He wasn't accustomed to Sandry being horribly sad, or at least, not like this. Feeling awkward under the new aura surrounding them, they both sat in complete silence. And not the good kind of silence. 

"Hey," Sandry interrupted, her voice eager again. "Wanna see something?" She turned to him, a semi-sweet smile on her face. 

Briar smiled an exasperated smile at her, "I don't have much of a choice in this manner, do I?" 

Giggling, Sandry pranced up from the bed and started walking to the far side of the room. When she reached the end of the room, she looked back at Briar and waved a hand at him, "Come on. Hurry up." 

Briar sighed before he got up from the bed and started to casually make his way towards the other side of the room. 

"Come _on_," Sandry said through clenched teeth. When Briar was finally about five feet away, Sandry grabbed him by the arm and tugged him forward. 

Briar goggled at her. So the noble had a grip. Something to chew on. 

"Now," she started, excitement seeping through her smile, "check this out." With that, she threw open two panels which swung open and showed outside of Discipline. 

Briar found his breath caught in his throat. The scene in front of him was. . .breath-taking. All of Winding Circle was under sunset, bathed in citrus orange and deep scarlet red. Crickets were chirping in the background and the sun was sitting pretty half-way between being down and being up. The moon was already out, but it was a eerie yellow, set high in the horizon. 

"Woah," He breathed finally, eyes wide opened. Sandry simply giggled at his expression before she rested her elbows on the edge of the cut-in window. 

"I know," she whispered sweetly, a dreamy smile on her face, "I bet there's not a better view in Winding Circle." 

Briar chuckled before he stuck his hands in his pockets. He peered at Sandry, intent on saying something writhing to her, but caught himself. The words just sorta died in his mouth, melting away. Instead, he just stared at her, suddenly aware of how much Sandry had changed. And in a good way. 

And, why exactly hadn't be noticed before hand? Maybe because he was as thick-headed as an ox. 

He shook his head, but didn't quit looking at her. Her long brown had been braided up on top of her head, but some of the hair had escaped from the braids and fallen in front of her eyes. Her eyes blinked slowly and a sigh escaped her lips. She was oblivious to his stares, and Briar was glad of it. He rather liked to stare. 

Sandry put her chin in her hand, letting her long fingers tap unknowingly against her cheek. "Sure is a nice night, huh Briar?" She looked up dreamily at him as he was looking at her. And, in all convenience, she seemed to know why he was staring. She blushed. 

Briar blinked out of his aura, slightly embarrassed. Immediately, his defense mechanisms went into auto-pilot and he managed to say something writhing, "Off in your own dreamland again, milady?" He shook his head mockingly, before winking at her, "I always thought you were a bit of a space-case." 

All right, he deserved some kind of reward for comebacks. . . 

Sandry pursed her lips in cheerful frustration. Raising an eyebrow, she grabbed the nearest pillow and flung it at him. "Ohh, you!" She shrieked through clenched teeth. 

He tried to prepare himself for the impact, but he could only throw his hands up to his face in desperation. The pillow found heavy, immediate contact with him, almost knocking him off his feet. And, to his and possibly Sandry's surprise, the pillow split and feathers flew everywhere. As he started to scream, the feathers flew into his mouth and Briar started to choke on them. 

Every minute was getting better. 

Sandry lowered her pillow in shock, watching as Briar tried to spit feathers out of his mouth. They stood in complete, stunned silence before Sandry burst into happy, shaking laughter. She bent over with laughter, shrieking bursts coming out of her lungs. 

"Oh, oh, oh," she stuttered, laughter breaking her words, "I'm sorry, Briar, but you look really funny!   
  
If it wasn't enough that he had remove feathers from his mouth, he also had someone laughing at him. Briar stuck his tongue out and removed another white feather from his mouth. Sandry was still laughing uncontrollably. He should be mad. Terribly mad. But, somehow, all he could do was smile. 

Removing another feather, Briar glared at Sandry. Still smiling, he grabbed a pillow and said, "So, that's how it's gonna be, eh? Two can play at this game, my dear." With that, Briar swung the pillow at Sandry. 

She threw her hands up, but the pillow still hit her. Letting out a shriek, she started to swing her pillow at Briar, feathers flying everywhere. 

Briar returned her hit. This time, his pillow split also. Feathers flew in the air. 

Soon, both of them were hitting each other non-stop, not taking turns. Needless to say, a pillow fight ensued. 

Both of them tried to hide behind anything they could, but both of them found it useless. Briar observed the floor area and saw that it was completely covered with feathers. And more feathers were flying in the air. And more feathers on the beds. Lots and lots of feathers. And when one pillow lost all it's feathers, they would pick another one and start over again. 

Briar looked around. Rosethorn and Lark were going to kill them. Right then, though, Briar could care less. 

And no one was willing to surrender. 

Finally, when all the pillows had been used, Briar managed to grab Sandry's wrist and slap the pillow out of her other hand. She looked up at him in mock-horror, her eyes wide. Her hair had come practically down from the continuous beating received to it. Unable to hold her giggles, she blew a piece of hair out of her eyes. 

"Surrender!" Briar gasped through chuckles and panting. 

Sandry shook her head and giggled, "Never!" 

Grabbing her other wrist, he shook her playfully, "I'll say it again: Surrender!" 

Finally, after a large amount of shaking, Sandry finally yelled, "Okay, okay, I give up." She giggled despite her predicament. Then, still giggling, she looked up at him, smiling. 

Briar smiled back, cursing himself as he did so. Something was different about this smile she had on her face. It was like it was almost hesitant. Sweet but hesitant. 

As her giggles subsided, Sandry looked down at her feet, her eyebrows scrunched up in thought. Then she looked back up at Briar, who was still holding her wrists, through shy eyelashes. 

Something was very wrong about the atmosphere. Briar knew he had do something soon or. . .he didn't know. He just knew something was going on. Something not normal. 

And he was right. 

Sandry reached up and barely brushed her lips next to his. And he didn't even have time to object, for she pressed harder, her lips square on his. 

Whoa. 

He stood shock-still, afraid to move. He simply held Sandry's wrists, eyes wide open with surprise. 

This kiss was like another world compared to the other ones. The other ones were teasing and not real. Or not real in the sense that they meant nothing. This meant something, somehow. 

Briar's mind screamed at him to stop it. Sandry was a _friend_. Friends don't kiss friends. Or not like this at least. He should really just shove Sandry away, tell her that this just isn't supposed to happen. They should just go on living being friends. It had worked nicely before this. Teasing kisses were fine, just as long they didn't turn out like this. 

So, what Briar did next, he couldn't understand. 

He leaned into Sandry's embrace and kissed her harder. And then everything went hazy, kind like he was in some kind of slow-motion. 

All that came recognizable was that the clinch between him and Sandry became closer, and they only stayed that way for a few seconds. Suddenly, like she was struck with lightening, Sandry's eyes flew open. She panicked, pushing away from Briar, who fluttered his eyes open, as shocked as her. 

"I. . .I," Sandry stuttered, eyes wide and searching around the room before finding Briar's eyes. "I, oh. . .that wasn't suppose to happen." Wiggling out of his embrace, she glanced at him with tearful eyes before she ran down the stairs of the attic. 

Briar watched her go, before he cursed. Loudly. 

What _exactly_ was he thinking? Apparently, he wasn't thinking. 

Briar walked up to the wall and glared at it. 

How many times do you have to knock your head against a wooden wall to knock yourself unconscious? 

One, Two, Three, Four. . .ow. 

Briar rubbed his head before he sat down on his bed. Looking over his hands, Briar shook his head. This whole predicament wouldn't be such a big deal if there wasn't one fact lingering in the back of his mind. That was that he actually enjoyed it. Yes, he enjoyed the kiss. Or maybe it wasn't that he just enjoyed it, or found it pleasurable. Sure, Briar was sure there were tons of simpering noble idiots who wouldn't mind puckering-up to Sandry. But for some reason, the kiss meant something more, like. . .Briar couldn't place his finger on it. It was just that it had seemed so right, like his whole body had just gone, "Ohhhh, I get it. It all makes sense now." 

But that was crazy. . .right? 

Plus, Sandry kissed him first. Maybe he was just a victim of strange woman behavior. 

However, when Briar thought of this, it sounded weak in his own mind. Sighing, Briar stood up and looked at the stairs. He was going to have to face Sandry somewhere along the line. Might as well get it over with. Maybe he could solve some of the strange questions running through his mind. 

With determination, Briar marched downstairs. . . 

**_-- Chapter will continue in next installment._**

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_Heh, don't kill me for leaving you there. I have my reasons, I swear! I wanna show Sandry's POV on this whole thing, too. She's going through a little more turmoil than you may think._   
_Anywho, thanks for reviews. I'm so lucky to have people who are devoted to the story. Thanx a billion._   
_Until the next installment, see ya!_


	6. Are Pillow Fights Romantic?. . .Pt2

circle6 **Disclaimer: Blah, blah blah. . .don't own and don't sue.**   
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_To be your friend was all I ever wanted; to be your lover was all I ever dreamed._   
_ ~Valerie Lombarde~_   
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**Chapter 5 continued: Are Pillow Fights Romantic?**

** (Continuation of Chapter 6. Everyone's 16. This one's Sandry's third person POV.)**   


Sandry couldn't think. Her mind was just one big collision of fifty-billion emotions. Thoughts weren't coherent. She wasn't quite sure if she even knew the meaning of coherent at that second. 

Climbing down the stairs clumsily, Sandry tripped on the third stair downward. She fell to the floor quite ungracefully, her skirt caught on the wood. Cursing in a quite explicit manner, Sandry tugged at her skirt. It wouldn't budge. She cursed some more, pulling furiously at her skirt before it ripped. Thank the gods it wasn't her good skirts. She hadn't worn them today for hope that whatever had just happened a few seconds ago wouldn't have happened. But it did. Gods, it had happened. 

Sandry bit her lip fervently in order to keep her tears inside her eyes. She knew that crying wouldn't get her anywhere. It would just keep whatever that was coherent in her mind there. Given there wasn't much there, but enough to start putting all her thoughts together. 

She suddenly regretted asking Lark for answers on a rather confusing time she was going through. However, the bad thing about the whole thing wasn't that Lark's advice didn't work. It was simply that it worked. It worked too well. That wasn't a good thing in this manner. 

Running downstairs, Sandry paused when Tris and Daja looked up at her and smiled . Sandry tried to smiled back, but her lips quivered in her effort. Tris and Daja's smiles instantly vanished. 

"Sandry. . ." Daja started, concern creasing across her brow, "what's wrong?" She started walking towards a watery-eyed Sandry, arms crossed. 

Tris frowned at her before glaring upstairs, "Did Briar say something?" She tore her eyes from the stairs and smiled evilly at Sandry, "I'll go beat him up if you want." 

She looked at Tris, before she managed a weak chuckle. And then something hit her like a ton of bricks. Guilt flared up in her stomach and she wanted nothing more than just puke it. And, to Sandry' surprise, she was starting to feel slightly weak in the knees. She had to get somewhere else. Just seeing Tris made her feel weak. 

Standing meekly, Sandry looked around fiercely. She could try to hide in her room. No. . . Briar would find her there. She had to find someplace where no one would look for her. 

Daja was about to say something to her, but Sandry rushed towards the door. Before she went outside, she turned to Daja and Tris, "Guys, don't tell Briar I went out here, okay?" Her voice sounded watery, and she could see why. Her eyes had filled up with desperate tears. Sandry hated being a sob-story. But this was a strange chapter in her life. She deserved a cry. 

Daja and Tris exchanged worried glances before turning back to her. "Why? What has he done, Sandry? Tell us," Daja asked her pleadingly. Tris mirrored Daja's concern. 

What had Briar done? Sandry chuckled at the irony at it all. The question was, "What had she done?" She had probably ruined a life-time of friendship, something that could had been the best thing for her in her life. _Friendship._ That's what it was. 

But, why in the world didn't it feel like friendship? Sandry wasn't an expert on love, but she was almost quite sure that you weren't supposed to feel like this when she were just friends. 

She shook her head from keeping a billion questions from running through her brain. Daja and Tris were staring at her as if she had contracted a disease that somehow they could fix. But there was nothing, absolutely _nothing_, they could do to fix a confused heart. Stuttering, Sandry looked at both of her friends, "No, no, it's not that. I mean, Briar hasn't done anything," she glanced down at her hands before murmuring, "it's me who's done something." 

"What?!" Daja asked her, eyebrows creased downward. 

"What the. . .?!" Tris commented as the same time as Daja, coming slowly towards Sandry, who in turn backed away. 

Sandry suddenly realized that she needed to get somewhere to think, to let her thoughts together. It was like someone had taken a partially put-together jigsaw puzzle and thrown it across a room. Every piece of the puzzle was aimlessly floating somewhere. Sandry had to put them back together. And _all_ of the puzzle, not just the little part that was put together. 

Exiting through Discipline's front door, Sandry looked pleadingly at Tris and Daja, "Please don't tell Briar where I went." They simply crossed their arms across their chests as if a manner saying "tell-us-what's-going-on." She bit her tongue so hard that it started to bleed, "_Please_, you guys. . ." Waiting expectantly, she stood half-way in the door, her head in the inside of the house. 

Daja, who was looking highly exasperated, threw her arms in the air. "Why not? You're not going to tell me anything anyway." With that, she gave Sandry a sympathetic smile before turning to Tris. 

Suddenly realizing that Sandry and Daja were both staring at her, Tris's eyes opened wide. She shrugged, an irritated smile on her face. Crossing her arms across her chest, Tris sighed. "Well, don't look at me. My lips are sealed." 

Sandry smiled a soft, thin smile at them. "Thanks," She said almost apologetically. Then, with a quick dash, Sandry closed the door to Discipline. She smoothed her skirt before taking out in a fast run away from the cottage. She didn't know what her destination would be. All that she cared about was getting away. Racing past trees and brightly colored robed dedicates, she felt her adrenaline pound mercilessly in her head. Confusion spurred her onward. Something told her to keep going, that when the time came, something would tell her to stop. 

She was fortunate enough to only trip two times on her rather long skirt. If she wasn't a noble and people didn't expect her to at least wear skirts, she would throw them away. She had only worn britches once or twice in her life. The Gods knew that they were ten times better than any skirt. Especially when running. 

Then, ironically, her adrenaline suddenly failed her. It suddenly seemed like she had been running for miles and days. Stopping, Sandry panted in large, painful gasps. She leaned her head against a tree beside the road before she bit her tongue. Briar wouldn't think to look here. Or at least, she didn't think he would. She had always somehow known where he headed when he went to get away from people. It was like something had connected him and her with a string so that when one tugged away, the other went with them. But, that didn't make _any_ sense. Or, maybe it did. 

Sandry sighed. Nothing made complete sense right now. Glancing upward, Sandry sighed. She supposed she should climb the tree. That way, just in case Tris and Daja couldn't keep their mouths shut, and Briar did walk down the pathway, he wouldn't be able to see her. Her green wincey dress should help disguise her. Plus, she had to get somewhere to think. And she was a bit paranoid with all the dedicates surrounding her. They couldn't read her mind, she was sure. Well, pretty sure. 

When she reached a branch that was in the middle of the tree, she sat, resting her elbows on her knees. Sighing waveringly, she put her hands in her face, obviously confused. 

All she could ask herself was: Why? Why had she listened to Lark? Lark usually gave wonderful, excellent advice. Perhaps she had given good advice this time. Maybe it was too good. 

"Lark," Sandry had started earlier on in the day, her elbows propped on the kitchen cabinet. Looking delightfully at a bowl of fresh fruit, she popped a berry into her mouth before asking, "how do you know if you like a person as a friend or more?" 

Lark had turned to Sandry and raised an appraising eyebrow. "And who might this person be?" Folding her arms across her chest, Lark pursed her lips questionably. 

A slight curve lighted Sandry's lips before she shook her head, "I never said I knew who it was." She looked at Lark sweetly, her eyes glittering mischievously, "I think you know the answer to this question." 

"Maybe. . ." Lark started before she started to stir a bowl full of sugared fruit over a simmering fire. "You want to know how to know the difference a friend and someone who's more?" She looked up from her bowl of fruit before glancing at an apprehensive Sandry. Chuckling, Lark shook her head, "First I would say you already know. It's already in here." With that, Lark put a hand of her heart, smiling sweetly. 

Sandry copied Lark by putting a hand of her heart, listening to the beat of her heart. Then, after a few seconds she whispered, "What if you're heart's confused?" Her voice sounded distant and concerned, much to her dismay. 

Lark turned on her heel and smiled smugly at Sandry, "So. . . this _is_ about you?" She watched Sandry blush and frown a pout at her before she chuckled, "Who's the lucky lad?" Sandry's face simply pouted harder and Lark laughed harder. When she managed to subside her laughter, she shook her head, "When then, secondly, if you didn't know what your heart was saying, I would simply kiss him." 

"Kiss him?!" Sandry exclaimed, her head popping up. "You're not serious are you , Lark?" All she got back from Lark was a chuckle. Crossing her hands across her chest, Sandry bit her lip. Lark was usually right, and the idea wouldn't be so bad. One quick kiss and she would figure out what all these conflicting emotions that were going on about Briar. She would know why she had felt so intimately close to him lately. And the dreams she was having. . . they were quite interesting. No, not interesting. Confusing. 

But now that Sandry knew, she knew now why people said that ignorance is bliss. It wouldn't had been so bad if Briar hadn't done the unthinkable. 

"Da. . .damn him!" Sandry's tongue stuttered on the forbidden word, "He wasn't supposed to kiss me _back!_" She spit the words in the air, not quite sure if she was really mad at Briar. Shaking her head, Sandry knew she wasn't. It had been her decision. And, she should've cut the kiss off as soon as he started to respond back. 

And why was she so upset? It was just one kiss, something her and Briar could easily make into a inside joke. They had done it with other kisses. Sandry chewed on the inside of her cheek, before shaking her head defiantly. The other kisses were meant to be jokes. This one wasn't. Everything about the kiss had seemed ground-breaking. It was the first time everything made perfect sense, like Sandry's universe seemed to sigh in relief. Something had just been put together. And, now that she thought it over, her and Briar seemed like two very strange puzzle pieces put together. Like the two puzzle pieces that had to be twisted several different ways so that you could see how they fit together. And when you did put the two together you wanted to do nothing more than scream and hit your head against the wall. It seemed obvious then. 

Sandry sighed in a flutter sort of way. Not to mention, everything about it had been how she wanted it to. She wasn't quite sure how she would've handled Briar if he hadn't kissed back. Somehow, she had almost expected that he would kiss her back. Actually, she _knew_ he would the second she put her lips on his. So, another why. Why hadn't she pulled back immediately? 

Because, darn it all, she was attracted to him! 

Sandry caught herself in her thoughts, looking around to make sure she hadn't said what she had thought out loud. Sighing in slight relief, she shook her head. It was true. Gods knew he had become very much attractive during the time out from the rest of the Discipline Group. But, Sandry knew that the only reason didn't lie just in his looks. If that's all she every cared about, she'd be long ago married or engaged to some simpering, greasy snob of the court. Briar was more, more than she had every managed anyone could be to her. Daja and Tris she would die for, but something had happened in her heart today, that she couldn't just turn it on and off whenever she wanted. This wasn't a game. 

This was forever. Maybe even more than that. 

So, if this was such a beatiful thing, why was all this making her feel away? Sandry rested her head on her hands before she bolted up as if struck by lightening. Tris. That was it. 

Tris was in love with Briar. Okay, maybe she hadn't said that she was in love with him, but she had commented on his eyes and smile. But Tris didn't compliment often. 

Suddenly feeling sick with guilt, Sandry leaned back against the tree and sighed. This wasn't what she had in mind when she had her first true, real kiss. Suddenly, something rustled in the tree below her. She glanced downward in surprise before she saw who it was. 

She couldn't even stutter. She watched in astonishment as Briar climbed his way towards her. She knew that Tris and Daja couldn't keep their mouths shut. 

He was watching were he was climbing, but after awhile, he looked up at Sandry shyly. "Hey," he said in a uncharcteristic sheepish voice, his lips turned up in a slight, gentle smile. They looked at each other before he asked, "Do ya wanna give me a hand, here?" 

Sandry stared at him with wide eyes before hissing coldly, "Go away." With that, she turned her head tartly away from him, eyes watering. 

There was a period of brief of stunned silence between the two before Briar snapped back at her, "Let's not forget who kissed who here." Sandry turned to him, lips pursed. He put a hand through his hair, "By the way, nice clinch there milady. I didn't know I was _that _irresistible. . ." 

Sandry's mouth dropped open in disgust and utter surprise. Then, she snapped it shut before picking up one of the tree's acorns and pelting it at him. "Ohhhh, you!" She growled at him, landing a carefully planned hand on her hip. 

Briar threw up his hands in the air, trying to shield his face from the acorn. However, he wasn't fast enough, for it landed promptly in the middle of his forehead. Shaking his head, he looked up at her with a frown. "Hey, there, milady. I mean no harm." 

She snorted before turning away sharply. Sitting for a second in complete silence, she whispered bitterly, "Go away." 

"What?" Briar asked, his voice hinged with disbelief. 

Sandry turned to him and spat, "Go away, Briar. You're just making all of this worse for me." Her eyes softened from their icy glare and watered up with tears. "Oh, Briar," she wimpered like a hurt, sad puppy, "just go away." 

He stared at her blankly before he squinted his eyes, "Can. . .can I just saw something real. . ." 

"No!" Sandry interrupted passionatly, her eyes in cold fire. "No, no, no, Briar. Just. Go. Away." Sandry tried not to cry. She tried with all her heart, all her soul not to let Briar see tears. She did anyway. 

"Sandry. . ." 

"No, don't!" She practially screamed as she childishly covered her ears with her hands. Tears poured down her cheeks freely, but it didn't matter anymore. Sandry squeezed her eyes shut, feeling as they burned in painful agony. "No, no, no, no, no. . ." she mumbled madly, shaking her head back and forth. 

Suddenly, like a bolt of lightening, something grabbed hold of her shoulders and shook her. "Sandry, get a grip! Would you _please _get a grip?!" It was Briar, and he sounded frustrated 

Sandry shook her head fiercely, her hair sticking to her cheeks due to the fact that her tears had stained her cheeks. She still had her hands next to her ears, put Briar pulled them down to her sides. "Will you just calm down and hear me out?" Briar grunted at her, before nearly yelling, "Whether you like it or not, I'm going to tell you what I think." 

Wimpering pitifully, Sandry tried to pull away from him, but failed miserably. His grip was firm and unyielding. Then, in desperatation, she curled up in merciless agony. She was still crying in silent shakes, but her eyes didn't hold anymore tears. 

"Sandry!" Briar shook her, "Look at me, dammit!" He shook her some more, trying to get her to calm down. When, after a few minutes, Sandry still writhed in silent agony, Briar sighed before saying, "Well, since you're not going to listen --big surprise-- I'm going to say it anyway." He took a deep breath before going onward, "Sandry, if you're even thinking coherently, which I highly doubt, I want you to be quiet until I can say you can talk again." 

Sandry heard him and immediatly, she popped her head up. "I know what you're saying. I _can _hear, you know." Although her words were broken up by sudden gasps of air, it was coherent. 

Briar frowned crookedly at her, "Didn't I tell you to be quiet?" He still held her hands, watching her with curious eyes. She was now trying to regain some kind of control, but wasn't doing very well. Every few seconds, she sucked a large gasps of air that sounded like a hiccup. He shook his head before smiling at her, chuckling gruffly deep in his throat. Then, reaching out a hand, he smoothed back the hair in her eyes before saying roughly, "You sure like to put on a nice show, don't you, milady?" 

Eyes wide open, Sandry stared at him, shocked at his sudden gentleness. Helping him wipe the rest of the hair out of her face, she squinted her eyes at him before gasping, "Briar?" 

In a sudden change, Briar pushed her back at an arms length and snapped at her, "Now, listen to me. Don't talk until I say you can. . ." 

"If this is about that kiss, Briar, I. . ." Sandry interjected raspily, her eyes fluttering down to her lap. ". . .I'm sorry. It was my fault. I take all the blame. . ." 

She was cut short when Briar started bursting out into laughter. "Blame?!" He asked in an astonished tone, chuckling lightly. "Listen to me Sandry. There's nothing to apologize about. If anything, I'm the one caused all this confusion," Sandry was about to say something, but Briar cut her off, "now, will you please close that mouth of yours? I can get a clamp if it takes too much physical effort." Obeying his order, Sandry shut her mouth stubbornly, an annoyed look on her face. "Now, I'm about to say something that I'm not quite sure I know what I'm talking about. Go on, hate me for it. But I think you gotta know. It's about me, no, it's about us. I'm not quite sure why I'm saying this." With that, he stopped and shook his head, "Something's really gotten into me." 

"Briar you don't have to say anything. . ." Sandry whispered, obviously spooked by his new behaviour, ". . .we can go on being friends. You, know, how we used to be. . ." 

Briar laughed mockingly before staring at Sandry, "Don't you get it?! I know you know what I'm talking about when I say that something happened back in the attic. Something so complex and weird, we both can't comprehend it. All I know is that when it happened, it was like coming up outa water and taking my first breath of real air. Don't laugh at me, I'm serious." Truth was, Sandry wasn't laughing at him. Her mouth was parted every so slightly, her eyes wide and pensive at him. "And Sandry, we _can't_ be friends anymore, you know that. And it scares me too. But Sandry, it's like suddenly deciding that we don't need our eyes and think, 'Oh, what the heck, let's gourge our eyes out. What are they good for anyway? Let's be how we were before birth. Blind as a bat.' You know it can't work like that. And don't go telling me that we aren't nothing more than friends. I'd tell you I loved you, that I couldn't live without you, but, with you, it's different. It's like saying I'm in love with my eyes or ears. You just can't do it." With that, Briar took a large, quivering breath before smiling smugly. "There," he said, "I'm done." 

Sandry stared at him, open-eyed for the longest minute of her life. Then, in a burst of giggles, Sandry looked disbelievingly at Briar, "Who are you and what have you done with Briar?" She asked mock-suspiciously, her eyes squinted. 

Briar rolled his eyes and Sandry laughed full-blown, her formal tears forgotten. She sniffled pitifully before looking at him with large watery eyes. "What does this all mean?" She asked shyly, the sudden uncomfortableness of his comfession settling in. Squiriming under his gaze, Sandry smiled hesitantly. 

Shrugging, Briar threw his legs off the sides of the branch they were both sitting. He blow a ebony piece of hair out of his eyes before saying, "Not quite sure. But somehow it all makes sense." Briar stopped swinging his legs on the tree and looked at her and smiled crookedly, "Plus, I'm pretty sure it doesn't mean that we have to get married and have twelve children." 

Sandry laughed shakily, nontheless amused. She shook her head before looking at him, "Can you imagine what Daja and Tris would do if we said that we were engaged and getting married in spring?" 

"We're not, are we?" Briar asked in mock-horror. Or at least, Sandry thought he was just being silly. 

She hit him over the head playfully, knocking the crooked smile off his face. She followed his suite by swinging her legs over the edge of the limb, kicking them in the air. Then, a thought hit her hard. Swallowing thickly, she looked hesitanatly at Briar, "Speaking of Tris and Daja. I thought," she paused, taking a large breath, "you and Tris were. . .you know." 

He looked at her in surprise, "I know?" 

"Yes, you know," Sandry looked at Briar searchingly, hoping he would get her drift. He didn't. Frowning, Sandry went onward, "Together. You and Tris were together." 

He burst into laughter, shaking his head. "Me. . .me and coppercurls?!" He laughed harder, while Sandry frowned in indignation. "Can you see it now? Me and coppercurls at each others necks for the rest of our lives." Briar glanced at Sandry, before winking, "Neither of us would live together. We'd kill each other!" Still laughing, he shook his head, "Plus, if you had your head in the clouds, milady, you'd know that she's been seeing someone for nearly two months." 

Sandry turned her head sharply, looking at Briar with large, astonished eyes. "What?!" She asked in shock, not quite sure if she had heard Briar correctly. 

"You heard me right. She's been seeing some guy from Janaal. Coppercurls only wrote about him once. I gave her a good teasing." He glanced at Sandry before chuckling as she shook her head in exasperation. 

Still shaking her head, Sandry absently murmured to the air in front of her, "Well, Good Mother of us all, I really thought that you two were going to end up together." 

Briar chuckled before shrugging. "Well, see, I thought that you thought that she thought I thought that we thought. . ." 

Sandry rolled her eyes as he rambled on. Putting a hand on his knee, she reached over and silenced him by covering her lips with his. It worked quite well. He sat shock-still before he placed his hand on her cheek delicately and kissed her back. When he did so, Sandry sighed in relief. This was the first innocent, sweet kiss. The other ones had either been jokes or ground-breaking. This one was simply. . .lovely. 

Suddenly, somebody called down from underneath them. "Hey, you two!" The voice was sharp and unmistakable. It was Rosethorn. And she didn't sound happy. "Hey! Lovebirds!" She called again, her hinged with impatience. 

Briar looked down before clear shock painted his face. "Rosethorn! What are you doing here?" 

Rosethorn looked at him blankly before raising an appraising eyebrow, "I don't know. . .maybe I should be asking you the same thing. But you can explain that later, Romeo. Right now, you can explain this." With that, Rosethorn pulled something from behind her back. It was a mutilated pillow, its stuffing still falling out. She only pursed her lips. "Daja and Tris said they didn't do it. That leads me to you two. Daja and Tris said you'd be here." 

If Briar was going to say something, he didn't. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Then, he clamped his mouth shut, aware that no inspiration was coming to him. Leaning over to Sandry, he whispered in her ear, "Let's make a run for it." With that, he jumped from the tree, followed by Sandry, before he started sprinting down the pathway. 

They were both laughing like two toddlers. And as they ran down the pathway, they could hear Rosethorn yelling. 

"Hey, come back! Come back, young man! Do you hear me?!"   
_______________________________________________________________________________________________ 

**General Surgeon's Warning: LONG AUTHOR'S NOTES CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO YOUR HEALTH. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!**

_YAY! WOOOOOOHHHHHH! It's done. The story's done. Yay! Actually though, I'm planning to write a sequal to this whole thing. Or at least I was thinking about it. What'd you think? Tell me if you want it. If you do, I'll probably have the new part up next week._   
_Plus, I writing other COM fics. I thought about writing a Daja/Kisel, (NO ONE write these things. Ug, it's so annoying. Personally, I've been routing for these two all along.) I also have another Sandry/Briar thing going on. Like a totally different fanfic. And, you know what people? Tris needs a man! I'm sorry, but she does! If Tammy puts Briar and Tris together, I'll be happy. (Well, I'll probably be screaming at the book, "DAMMIT SANDRY! You should've taken him when you could've!" Kinda like with Alanna and George. I was reading In The Hand of the Goddess yesterday and I was screaming, "No. . . .! With George, stupid! Not Jon, GEORGE! It's spelled G-E-O-R-G-E! George!!!!" Yes, I know they get together in the end, but it was really bothering me. . .heh, don't take me serious here, people.) Anyways, gotta love those Noble/Street Rogue pairings. **Sighs**_   
_Well, thanks a billion for reviews, you all are the best! Sorry this is out late! It woul've actually been out on Tuesday, but my browser was being stupid. Oh well. . ._   
_Thanx again people! _

  



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